Families and Neighbors
by LizzyGal86
Summary: Doctor Will Halstead runs into a old childhood neighbor who has changed considerably and rediscovers the city he loves during a blackout ridden scorching summer.
1. Chapter 1

"Could you just like...leave the X-ray machine on? I won't tell. I promise," the little boy with the flaming red Mohawk pled beneath Doctor Will Halstead's skilled hands. His bright green eyes were fixated on the machine that had just been used.

Had the child not been so articulate, Will may have been worried about a traumatic brain injury.

Although he had not ruled out a concussion.

The emergency department was full.

A school bus had gone off the road after being hit by a SUV on its way back from a schooltrip. The bus driver was up in surgery, having sustained wildly serious injuries when the bus crashed into a corner market. It'd destroyed the building and trapped the children for the better part of an hour. The jaws had been required to get the children and driver out.

Will could hear a few kids around the ED talking about it, as well as the firemen.

"Are you seeing double? Do you have a headache?"

The boy, Mark according to the paramedic who'd brought him in with pieces of metal in his leg and side, made a face of pure disbelief. "I didn't hit my head. The building hit me and if this accident didn't release my hidden superpowers, radiation is my only remaining option."

Will began to reevaluate the boy being in shock. He was incredibly coherent. He was bewilderingly focused and calm. As he removed a sizable piece of debris from the young patients leg the boy just barely grimaced, his attention elsewhere.

It struck Will as incredibly odd.

Mark, last name unknown, hadn't cried or expressed any feelings of fear or pain compared to the other more vocal patients.

"Are you experiencing any pain," he asked, not for the first time.

The boy's head whipped to the other side as a stretcher went by with a shouting little girl. "Can you find out if my brother's are here too? They were on the bus with me."

Glancing over at the empty nurses station, he found that he was on his own in the downright chaotic department. A nurse from another department helped him close up the wound from a large piece of building as he asked, "How many brothers do you have?"

"Three," Mark told him, eyes peeled for familiar faces. "Hector, Jun and Snoopy."

Blood continued to gush from two other places on his leg. Maybe he was expierencing effects of blood loss? "Snoopy? Are you sure?" He then focused his attention to the next gaping wound, having closed the most severe and heavily bleeding.

Mark rolled his head so he could glare at Will, "Yes! I'm sure. They're adopted not made up. We're all adopted. Our parents are dead so we live with Endora. Her husband is dead too."

For just a moment his heart sped up.

Endora was not a common name. Will knew a Endora from the neighborhood where he grew up, but she'd moved away for college.

"Oh? Does Endora have a last name so we can call her to let her know what happened?"

More blood came from Marks leg making Will look for a severed vein or piece of debris.

"Of course she has a last name...Hector! Hector!"

Before Will could even react, a boy without a shirt with a large laceration to his scalp came running his way. A butterfly needle was taped to his arm with iv tubing loosely trailing behind, clearly having been ripped out. A neck brace made his already limping gait awkward. But the child was on a mission with a resident not far behind.

It took all his strength to hold Mark on the stretcher when Hector threw his arms up around the boy, clinging to him for dear life. Blood smeared all over Mark's dirty white school uniform shirt.

"They want to give me a CatScan!"

Unlike Mark, Will could make out fear in Hectors dark eyes. The boy was terrified. Not that his adoptive brother missed it. In fact, Will was a little alarmed at how calm Mark was when the boy answered his brother, arms wrapped as equally tightly around Hector. "A CatScan is fine dude. It'll just look inside your head. Let them do it so when Endora gets here they can tell her you're fine and we can all go home. We don't want her to worry. Remember? We all have to be strong. We're not children anymore. We're all that's left."

Those words didn't sit well with Will. They were heavy and uncomfortable.

When he helped the new resident peel the two boys apart and positioned Mark back to continue sewing him up, he asked again, "What family can the hospital contact for you and your brothers?"

While he was pretty sure the school was already on top of that, a part of him needed to know for sure.

Mark stared up at the ceiling while reaching into his white school uniform shirt, "Endora. She's our legal guardian. Endora O'Grady." When Mark gave Will his address he was positive it was the same Endora from his childhood. Red frizzy hair, lots of freckles, braces, glasses, a bit on the boney side and stuck in Catechism class with him every Saturday morning. And apparently she was back and living on the same street as his parents.

He could vaguely remember his mother talking about Endora's husband being a firefighter. If he thought about it extra hard he thought he remembered hearing about her husband dying in a big forest fire. Every member of the team died if he recalled. But he wasn't positive. His mother would know, she'd know all the details being the neighborhood snoop.

When he pulled a sizable piece of glass out of Marks leg, the boy cried out sharply.

Will found himself eternally relieved with that reaction. A real reaction.

Absentmindedly the boy began to grip a medallion on a chain around his neck. A grimace of discomfort crossed his face as he fought hard to temper it down.

A moment later the boy rolled his head to the side where he coughed up a incredible amount of blood.


	2. Chapter 2

An hour later:

Will could not believe his eyes.

He simply could not believe it.

His Mother was in the ED with a stripper.

And his mother was not just standing next to the woman with black cherry hair, black matte stiletto nails, jeans tight enough to be painted on, a sequined black shirt that hugged a near perfect torso with cherry red lips and heels tall enough to make him uncomfortable. Oh no, his mother had a arm around the hysterical woman.

Maybe his mother had come by to bring him a late lunch and found the woman? Offered her support? His mother was heavily involved in the church. Naturally she'd offer her support to those in need.

His mother with Bermuda shorts, a t-shirt covered with butterflies and kittens.

Her glasses were even on a string that had beads on it.

His mother was not the sequin type.

Between patients and waiting on results for three others, he slowly approached the two woman hysterically gesturing at Maggie. His mother was all up in the strippers personal bubble up until she noticed her grown son.

Upon seeing Will she shouted his name, grabbed the other woman's arm and hurried over to him.

"Mom?"

"Will! This is Endora. Remember? From the neighborhood? Her boys are here. The school just said they were in a bus accident and wouldn't tell us anything else, they didn't even know what hospital they were in! We've been to two others looking for them!"

The Endora infront of him was not the Endora from his Catechism class or public school.

Results for two of the boys were on his tablet and he knew where one of the twins was at that moment.

As calmly and reassuringly as he could, he told Endora, who towered over him a few inches in those shoes. "All the boys are here. Actually I have results here for you and Snoopy is over in that room. He is going to be admitted for the night for observation for his concussion. He's exhibited some behavior we want to monitor." After a few swipes of his finger he added, "Mark went up into surgery for a perforated lung. It was repaired and he is in recovery. Hector was admitted for observation."

"There is another one. Four, she has four, what about John?"

"Jun," Endora corrected.

Not having seen that child, Will shook his head, "I don't know."

A tortured noise came from Endora. Her hands covered her mouth. Pointy black nails brought out her surprisingly dark eyes. Freckles were just visible on her face beneath artfully applied makeup.

His mother gasped loudly, "He's dead?"

Before he could correct their horrific assumption, he watched Endora's knees buckle beneath her as if wires had been cut that held her up. Quickly, he dropped his tablet and rushed forward before she hit the floor.

Beside him his mother wailed for the boy who sat in a back room bandaged up.

A staff member appeared as if out of thin air and helped maneuver the limp hyperventilating woman into a nearby chair. Deep gasps came from her that shook her body violently, those nails gripped her hair in a painful sort of way.

Quickly Will positioned her so she could breath without obstruction, placed a hand on her back and assured her, "The child is ok. He's in the back. He was near the end of the bus I heard. So his injuries were minimal."

When she looked up at him, gasping softer but in fast little spurts, a wild terror was in her expression. "But they're ok? They're all ok? They're all alive?"

Her gasping continued and began to concern Will.

Words like 'admitting' danced through his head when she made a attempt to stand. His hand was firm on her back, "Wait. Sit back down. You need to take steady breaths. Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. If you pass out I'll have to admit you."

Endora shook her head in response to that, "It's ok...I'm fine. I need to see them...my boys."

Will was not at all convinced.

Still she stood up. Legs wobbled like a newborn giraffe. A few hiccuping breaths shook her as she did her best to calm her breathing. Tears burnt the corners of her eyes.

Will eyed her closely. She remained strong as she tampered in a few more gasps.

After waiting as long as he could get away with, he motioned for her to follow and for his mother to stay put. Naturally he wasn't shocked when his mother ignored him.

The room that Snoopy was in was not far, so it took only minimal time to walk over. Still, when he came to the room he did pause at the door. "Try to remain calm when you see him. He's frightened enough as it is and if you pass out..." the warning hung in the air.

Endora nodded that she understood and followed the doctor in a small hospital room.

Unlike his nosey, puzzle loving mother, she didn't remember him at all from childhood.

Once inside she bit her lip at the sight of one half of her twins. Laying in a hospital bed that dwarfed his small body. Blood stained his khaki pants and white button up shirt. His head from the eyebrows up was wrapped in bandages. He had a eyepatch. But the worst was the bruising that took her breath away. More of his exposed face was bruised a deep purple than not, his uncovered eye was bloodshot and she could make out stitches in various places.

Little arms went up, "Endora!"

Wills mom thought he sounded like a frog and wondered if he'd swallowed anything. Not that she could take her eyes away from the boy whom she'd seen pretty frequently over the past week. Mostly out her kitchen window or from on her porch. Normally she couldn't tell him from his twin brother apart. Now she didn't even recognize him.

"My poor baby!" Endora wrapped arms around the child and held him close. She pressed her lips against his cheek, leaving behind red marks.

The child called Snoopy whispered conspiratorially, eyeing Doctor Halstead with suspicion. "I can't stay the night. You have to take me home. This is exactly how my mother died. I'm too young to die and hospitals are where people come to die."

Doctor Halstead stepped forward to comfort the distraught child.

Endora began to rub his little back, nails clicking in the process. "I'll be here tonight with you little man. Your brothers are here too. No one is going to die and come morning, I'll ask the doctors send you all home." Using the side of her hand, she wiped away stray tears. She didn't miss the suspicious look on Snoopy's face or that it was directed at the door instead of Doctor Halstead's person.


	3. Chapter 3

A day later:

Will didn't have any big plans for the sweltering summer night.

Maybe a cold beer in his air conditioned apartment, a baseball game he had on TiVo from earlier in the week.

Yet, after clocking out and exiting the doors to the hospital and strolling down to the parking lot, he was greeted to a surprising sight.

His mother by a new shiny SUV.

A brief fear that his father had finally driven his mother crazy, and she had traded her old well loved van in for that monstrosity seized him.

Up until his mother saw him and motioned for him to come forth.

In the back of a immaculate cargo area bigger than his college dorm bathroom were two wheelchairs. Property of the hospital.

Beside his mother stood a Asian child, the least battered of the twins, scratched up pretty good and sipping a Pepsi.

"Mom? What are you doing?"

His mother ignored him and pointed, "Help Endora get the boys in. They can finally go home."

A wave of irritation came over him, quietly he asked so the boy sipping soda loudly didn't hear. "Where are her parents? Don't you have bingo tonight?"

The very last thing Will wanted was another humiliation. After what happened with Natalie, he could barely think about it without burning from shame at the situation, but mostly his behavior. It was something he just wanted to forget and bury.

From his mother's expression he knew he said the wrong thing.

With hair as nearly as red as her face turned, she swatted at Will a little harder than intended. Hissing dangerously, "They died in a car accident last year. Remember?"

No he did not remember.

Jun stopped sipping his soda, "We're a regular circus of death dude."

Before his mother could swat at him again, Will hurried around the kid and between the two parked vehicles. Seated in a wheelchair was Mark with the Mohawk waiting his turn. Will peered into the open back door to see Endora buckling in Hector, or valiently trying to. Surprisingly she was considerably underdressed compared to the previous day in a black with white polka dot dress, those same kitten heels and that red lipstick. Her dyed hair was pulled up in a ponytail giving her a almost girl next door appearance. If the girl next door were a pinup model.

"It hurts too much...I don't want to wear the seatbelt," cried Hector from the back back seat. "Let me just lay on the floor. I won't tell."

Will could see Endora consider it before she noticed him.

Beside Hector from the back came a voice, "I'm good with it."

A snap decision was made and not just because Endora looked ready to let Hector ride on the floor. Hopping on into the nearest empty seat, Will took command of the situation before any laws got violated. Upon seeing the two pilot seats in the far back an idea came to mind. "Buckle him in. We'll put the seat back so the belt doesn't touch his face or shoulder."

Between the two of them and all their years of adulting, they managed to put the seat back enough to prevent discomfort for Hector and his formerly dislocated arm. A sling kept the tender limb in place.

"Do you have any ideas for that one?" Endora inquired, gesturing at Mark who had most all the stitches and in his side no less. "Surely you must have a idea. You do have a medical degree."

Will did a double take.

"Yeah," he found himself snapping a little snarkily. "I have a idea. Are you capable of driving slow? I think I remember you getting your license suspended for tickets back in high school."

"That was forever ago! I haven't got a ticket in ages! And how would you even know that," she gasped.

From the back came, "Its been weeks..."

Hector added, "...a month at least."

"We had Catechism together every Saturday. Plus we had at least one or two classes together every year in high school. We went on the freshman class trip together to DC and we egged the prom kings car together senior year."

Endora made a face and shrugged at Will.

She then glared at the two faces in the back, "Parking tickets don't count! Only tickets you go to court for count."

"Don't you remember Father O'Brian?"

"Oh I remember Father Delicious," she answered with fondness in her voice. "You...eh..."

"You literally sat beside me in algebra and copied all my work and homework."

Endora pursed her lips in thought then shook her head. "I copied off everyone in algebra to keep Mrs Harris off my trail...unless...we're you blonde back then?"

"No," Will answered, possibly testily.

Again, she shook her head.

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"Seriously...you sat behind me. You wrote all my book reports in exchange for answers on pop quizzes in algebra." Will reminded her from the stoop of her house in the neighborhood they both grew up in.

Sounds of 'The Simpson's' drifted outside punctuated by laughter into the warm summer evening.

Hamburgers from her backyard grill sat comfortably in his stomach.

He wasn't going to say that he was having the time of his life, but, Will was comfortable. It'd been a while since he felt like his head was clear and there wasn't a clock ticking incessantly at him. There was a beer in his hand. Neighborhood kids played outside. TVs could be heard as a ice cream truck drove a few streets over.

It was a blue collar neighborhood that he couldn't wait to get away from after high school.

Beside him on the warm bricks Endora shook her hear. A bottle of water in her hand, "Sorry Will...high school was a bit of a haze for me. My mom was going through chemo at the time so... I'm pretty thrilled I made it out without a criminal record."

A musical jingle drove drawing shouts from kids a street or two over.

Remembering what his mother had said, Will glanced at the brown bottle in his hands, "I heard about your parents. Sorry. They were good people."

She smiled in response.

Will took a sip of his beer then settled back in to enjoy the comfortable quiet on the front porch. Not before he asked, "So what's up with those nails? I've never seen anyone with four kids with claws like that."

Endora made a face, "They're for work."

Will almost spat out his beer. In the end he wound up choking it down.

She smiled triumphantly.

"I'm a burlesque dancer. There is a club downtown where I preform right now." After a peek at the stiletto nails she added, "They'll be on for the run of our show."

After a good bit of coughing, Will managed to rasp, "Like that big circus themed show everyone is going to?"

"Actually, that's the one I'm in."

Genuine interest crossed his features as he took a tentative sip from his bottle.

"I'm the ringmaster."

"That's pretty neat...do you have a whip?"

"Of course I have a whip," She smiled.

A remark about sequins was on the tip of his tongue, when with a sweeping noise, all noise went out. Lights went out in all the houses. Air conditioners fell silent. TVs were quiet. Even the string of lights around them went out.

Noises of outrage came from inside Endora's house and all around them. A calmness seemed to settle as modern noises were all gone minus for a few cars. Noises of protest grew.

"Is this...a blackout? Does Chicago get blackouts now?"

Will felt as shocked as she sounded, "I guess so...huh."

Being a summer night, it wasn't dark or near dark, so the pair remained seated on the stoop.

It wasn't long before conversation picked back up.

"So do you sing in the show?"


	4. Chapter 4

Doctor Charles strolled over to where Doctor Halsteadsat, a packed lunch in one hand and a bottle of water in the other.

"Why hello there! How did you fare during our blackout last night?"

Will looked up at the older man from where he sat devouring the rest of his sub. Lunch could end in a second in his line of work. So he wanted a full stomach for the rest of his shift. He couldn't help the grin that grew though at the question. "It was pretty nice. Drank a beer with the neighbors. Fell asleep on my parents couch. Slept like a baby. You?"

The dark haired psychiatrist sat down beside Will on a bench overlooking a garden area of the hospital. "Good for you. It's good to get out there."

Will didn't miss the almost clinical expression by the man. It irritated him, but it could have been second nature from a man who dedicated his life to psychology.

Said man went on, "Reading by flashlight alone in my apartment was how my blackout went."

A quick thought entered Will's mind that that could have been how he spent his night, alone in a dark apartment. In response he made a noise that could have meant anything and looked at his sub to determine where his next bite would come from.

As Charles organized his lunch in preparation to eat, he began to talk. "This morning I won a radio contest."

Will gave him a thumbs up since he had a mouth full of food.

"To a burlesque show. Two tickets too. And I can't seem to find someone daring enough to go with me." Doctor Charles said, schooling himself to peek at Will's expression discreetly. He'd gotten a wide range of reactions that morning and no takers. "What do you say young man? Are you brave enough to go to the circus?"

Doctor Charles then ate a chip and waited.

When Will answered it was without any of the previous reactions. Likely due to his chat with Endora. "I'll go. I know the dancer who's the ringmaster."

Charles's eyes widened, a smirk grew on his face. "I would not have taken you for a burlesque man."

"An old friend," Will clarified. Then wondered internally if he could say that since she didn't remember him at all from childhood.

When Will offered nothing else the two men ate their lunches in a companionable silence.

Eventually Charles noticed Will gathering up all his lunch trash.

His concern for the younger man was genuine, not of a professional or clinical nature. Watching Will struggle was hard. It was even harder to not offer help, or extend himself when he could pretty much garentee it would not be welcomed. The weight on Will's shoulders was visible in the theoretical dark. "How're your parents?"

"Retired," Will said, as if that explained everything.

Charles laughed, "I remember those days. Having to watch my parents as they transitioned to that next part of their lives. It was quite the expierence. They'd never been around one another that much. I wound up buying my father a membership at a country club so he could golf everyday and give my mother a break."

From the look Will gave him, Charles could tell he was considering that option.

"Dad has joined the Masons, Shriners and Knights of Columbus and is still driving my mother nuts. She's convinced she'll end up on a episode of Snapped," Will shared.

Charles laughed deeply at that.

He then took a big bite from his tuna sandwich. Will asked, "Do you remember people you went to high school with?"

Slowly Charles chewed and pondered the question.

"Mostly...But it's been a while. I do better at the reunions when I hear voices and see faces. Why."

For some reason, Will felt the need to fudge the situation. "I ran into someone from high school that I just cannot remember. But they remember me. Apparently we had a bunch of classes together and numerous shared encounters around school and the neighborhood. I remember everyone else though."

Charles took another bite, made a few thoughtful noises and eventually asked, "Have you looked at old pictures? Maybe that'll jog your memory."

"Yeah...I should do that. My mother saves everything."

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"Who is it?" A little voice shouted through the front door of Endora's house, two houses down from Will's parents house and childhood home.

With a backpack slung over one shoulder, he frowned at the door, "Me! Open up."

"Me who," shouted the voice, followed by whispering on the other side of the door.

Will could not help himself. He rolled his eyes and looked around to see if anyone was witnessing to his failed attempts to enter the home.

"Me, Will. I was here last night grilling dinner."

Through the door came the voice, "Oh yeah...what do you want?"

Another eyeroll came in frustration.

"I came to check on you all and see Endora."

Two young voices talked behind the door.

When a decision had been made, a different voice shouted through the door, "That's ok. We're doing fine. We don't need or want any more creepy dudes coming over here to audition at being our new daddy. So be gone!"

The other voice chimed in, "But for a nominal fee we'll pass on a message to Endora."

"Yeah! A fee!"

Looking upwards for help, Will could not believe he was getting shaken down by two kids. Still, he grabbed his wallet, knelt down, and pushed in a little mail slot. Two sets of eyes peered back at him.

"What if I give you..." he had to peek in his wallet., "...five bucks to go get Endora?"

A little hand slid through the mailslot. That hand grabbed the wallet then disappeared inside the door. Gleeful laughter came through as feet slapped loudly on hardwood floors inside. Will shouted after them with no luck. He stood up and banged on the door, then tried the doorknob again, locked.

A different course of action was clearly needed.

Remembering last night, he turned and climbed down the stairs on the front porch, walked around the house and over to the tall wooden fence.

Glancing around yet again, Will jumped and pulled himself up to the top of the fence, threw his legs over, then slowly lowered himself down. He didn't remember it being so hard. As a teenager he'd climbed over tons of six foot wooden fences without batting an eye. Finding himself no longer a teenager, he thanked every deity he could think of that he didn't fall and break anything.

Once on solid ground, Will walked through a yard in transition. Piles of debris were all around, a gazebo was being repaired, a fort was being constructed and a pond was being cleaned out. Over by the backdrop and stoop leading out to a grill and clothesline, stood Endora and Snoopy. A electric razor in her hand, the rest of his hair that the hospital didnt shave off was on the ground. Several rows of stitches stood out against his bruised scalp.

She noticed Will approach and waved, but kept touching up the spots of hair around the stitches.

When she eventually turned it off, she sighed and reached for a pair of small scissors. "I don't know Snoopy...it might look a little patchy until all the swelling goes down and I can get a smoother shave."

A loud aggravated groan came from the twin, "Can I go take a shower now? I'm itchy."

Endora snipped at a few offending areas, "What do you think Doctor Halstead? Can he take a shower?"


	5. Chapter 5

Glad he'd brought along extra supplies from the hospital, Will adjusted the bag on his shoulder then approached the irritated itchy child. All the sutures looked good and tight. Granted the skin was still swollen, bruised with numerous scratches from flying glass.

"Have you showered yet?"

Snoopy pointed to Endora in a highly accusatory manner, "She wouldn't let me. We babywiped it last night. You were there...don't you remember?"

"I'm not the one who has problems remembering kid."

Endora rolled her eyes.

Snoopy made a face. Clearly assuming it must have been an adult comment meant for his legal guardian. Snoopy brushed black hairs from his bare chest. "Whatever. What's for dinner Endora?"

She brushed the bigger clumps from his bruised back. "I havent decided. Be very careful with your head. You have a bunch of little scabs. They might sting in the shower."

Unconcerned, Snoopy hurried uncomfortably up the stoop and in the house.

She looked to Will.

"The stitches look good. I'll look at his head when he's out of the shower then bandage it up." As if to drive his point home, he gestured at his backpack.

Jun, the other twin, and Hector with a duct tape decorated sling, appeared in the open doorway before the screen door could shut. Triumphantly, Jun held up a handful of bills, "We got money for pizza. We can buy it like you said! Can we order pizza now?"

A statement oozing with righteous outrage was on the tip of Will's tongue.

Up until he remembered what it was like to be a eleven year old boy.

With a wave of her hand the two boys hurried back in the house.

"I'll pay you back. Just let me know how much cash you had in there. I can assure you your wallet is on the kitchen counter and they lost interest in it when they found your money."

Will shrugged in response, not wanting to be 'that' guy.

As Endora began to clean up her makeshift barber shop, he asked, "So how did you come to acquire all these kids?"

A smile quirked at the corner of her lips. "You mean, where are their mothers?"

"That too," he nodded.

After shaking off the electric razor vigorously, she sighed. "The twins mother had a massive coronary when she got the news about our husbands. A previously unknown heart defect or something. She died right there on the couch with the chaplain and fire chief."

Will gasped in horror, "Oh my god!"

She nodded, "Yeah. Hector's mom died a few months ago in a car accident. Drunk driver going the wrong way down the interstate, headon. She died instantly. And as for Mark, his dad had sole custody. Drugs. Had all her parental rights stripped."

Will couldn't even try to hide the shock on his face.

"So they would have all gone to the state of California. No relatives or none able to care for them. So I got a lawyer and adopted them all. It wasn't too hard, considering how their fathers and my husband died. Dateline did a feel good piece on it."

"When was that? When did they pass?"

"Almost three years ago..." she answered, wrapping the cord around the electric razor. "Things are starting to feel normal. Well a new sort of normal." The smile she gave him was a hopeful one, optimistic perhaps.

Heading towards the house, he inquired, "Is that what brought you back here?"

Ignoring the urge to pat his posterior as he climbed the step in front of her, Endora made a mental image for later. "The club I work at stole me from the club in California. So why not. Life is short, you know. Plus the boys really wanted to see snow."

Will looked back at her from the stoop, "Really?"

She nodded.

"I had no idea the burlesque world was so competitive."

Upon getting over the threshold, Will paused and turned around suddenly, surprising Endora. She bumped into him and found herself surprisingly close. Yet she refused to take a step back. Refusing to even seem uncomfortable.

When he hesitated at their proximity, she cocked her head to the side, "Yes?"

Will stared and completely forgot about Charles winning tickets. She was shorter than him and still, she seemed to completely overwhelm him. Her perfume was surprisingly floral. That red lipstick was so red. Her hair was the exact shade of a can of Cherry Cola. "I umm...is there nudity in burlesque shows?"

Head cocked to the side, one of her eyebrows went up.

"Not in our show. Why?"

The ground returned beneath his feet and when he looked down, he couldn't see the floor between them. Softly he almost whispered, "Charles, from work, won tickets, to your show. He invited me."

Enjoying the blush the spread across his cheeks, Endora stepped up into the threshold to push past him. Not before pressing herself even more so against him. "Aren't you lucky boys?" Drawing the tip of her black nail beneath his chin, she lifted his gaze back to eye level. "You'll have a stimulating time without full nudity. Don't you worry your pretty little self."

When she had fully passed him, he just stood there a moment, stunned. Unsure whether he was alarmed, in pain, aroused or what.

Will looked up to see Hector and Jun glaring at him.

Jun pushed his inky bangs out of his eyes, "You better like pepperoni."

"We're not a ham and pineapple home," Hector added.

Will's heart pounded. His fight or flight reflex kicked in. He wasn't sure who would eat him alive first, Endora or her minions. Yet he had grown up in Chicago. Without missing a beat he spat right back, "For heavens sake I hope not. Why don't you go ahead and order some cheesy sticks too. Since I'm apparently springing for dinner."

Both boys looked at him in a new approving sort of way.


	6. Chapter 6

Will could and had slept anywhere in the past. So it was no big surprise that he found himself sleeping soundly, crashed out on one of Endora's couches in a mess of pillows and blankets. After the city's second consecutive blackout no less.

In an hour the alarm on his watch would go off. But it was not the alarm that would wake him up.

It wasn't the boys arguing in the kitchen over cereal.

Nor was it the smell of coffee brewing or a early morning news show on the tv.

Not even the sounds of air conditioners kicking back on when the power returned woke Will up.

No, it was a ear piercing scream that woke him up.

Scrambling up through the blankets and remnants of sleep, auburn hair askew and a red mark on his face from a wrinkle in the pillow case. Will woke up fast and determined. He stumbled from the couch. More sounds came from upstairs and that was the direction he headed. Not just because three boys in various states of dress ran that way screaming for Mark either.

Will was right behind them in the same jeans and college t-shirt he had on yesterday, taking the stairs two at a time.

The scream came again at a lower decibel but more upset.

Their crowd turned right towards the boys room where Endora had just run, long purple robe fluttering behind her.

It was when Will made it into the bedroom that he saw the reason behind the screaming.

Mark with the Mohawk had infected stitches. Textbook infected. The ones from his surgery on his side were red, swollen, leaking a pus like fluid and bleeding towards the top. Endora did her best to mop up the discharge with her robe, even though the silk was not very absorbent. "Jun go call the Doctor Smiley and leave a message that..."

Will's doctor instincts kicked right in.

He pushed his way around the boys. "We'll take him to the ED Endora, he can't wait for his pediatricians office to open." He looked to the boys and issued instructions. "Someone needs to call my mother to take you three to school. Someone else go get some clean towels."

Upon even closer inspection he could see Mark was incredibly feverish and drenched in sweat.

As gently as he could manage he shooed her away to get a better look at the sutures. Not that she didn't have anything to do, she assured Mark that everything would be ok and not to worry about the smell.

"Can you fix it Will?"

He didn't look up from his careful examining, "Well need to test the infection in order to know what antibiotics to prescribe. This will all need to be cleaned out." Only then did he look up into her worried eyes. "I'll take him downstairs and call the ED nurse station to see who's working, if you want to put something on?"

For some reason, the thought of her going to the ED in a knee length cheetah print nighty and flowing silk robe just didn't sit well.

By the time she promised Mark he would be ok and hurried out to change, the twins came back with every towel and face cloth in the house in their arms.

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April narrowed her eyes and watched Will look over the results that Doctor Choi had ordered before he clocked out from his night shift. Results for the little boy in exam room three. "And how do you know that woman again? Because...I'm not saying you aren't adorable in your own special way...but in no world would you ever manage to entertain That woman."

"We grew up together," Will told her without looking up. Then he did glance up a bit insulted, "And not that we're dating. But, what makes you think I would be so far out of her league."

One of her perfect dark eyebrows rose skeptically, "Have you seen her show?"

"Not yet," he answered.

April made a noise that made Will very nervous, "And what is it with you and widowed mothers?"

Will gave her a dirty look, "She's not a mother. Those kids are adopted. They don't even call her mom."

April's skeptical eyebrow rose higher. "Have you seen that woman with that little boy?"

Will was quiet. Unsure of where April was going with her line of questioning, he felt it was safest.

"Do you have any idea what you're getting into?"

"No, because I'm not doing anything. I learned my lesson. In fact, I might add, she doesn't even remember me from high school. So no need to worry...I'm no where near my usual crash and burn."

If anything April was even more concerned for Will.

She watched him fill out a electronic order for a prescription. "I'll go give her the news."

"I'll do it. Ethan sewed him up so he needs to be bandaged."

April made a knowing face, "I'll do that. You have a new patient and since nothing is going on with you, it shouldn't be a problem." She then held her hand out for the tablet.

Will grudgingly handed it over.

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"So what's this I hear you have a girlfriend with four kids?" Maggie asked, watching Will stop dead in his tracks, having just clocked out a hour an a half after his shift ended.

Will turned, narrowed his eyes at April and watched Maggie grin with anticipation.

It was out of his hands.

He turned back to approach the station where the two women stood.

"April showed me her picture. Did you know she has a website?"

Will propped his elbows up on the counter but remained quiet. Also wondering how he didn't know there was a website.

"I thought we decided after...the unpleasantness, that we'd get you set up with that sweet gal who runs the food truck."

"Emily," April chimed in.

"Yeah, Emily, she's perfect for you."

Will frowned at the two of them. "What makes either of you think I'm interested in dating anyone? Maybe I currently lead a full and happy life free from the complications of romantic entanglements?"

Maggie was not convinced.

"Look, I'm genuinely thrilled you two have taken such an active interest in my life. But I have every intention of going home and cracking open a few medical journals that have been piling up before we have another blackout. Alone."

Neither woman looked entirely convinced.

When he turned to leave Maggie added, "Genevieve Black."

Will was confused.

"Its her stage name," April added, "So you can check out the website."


	7. Chapter 7

Will waited till he was well away from the hospital before he pulled out his phone to look up the website. After finding it, he found he couldn't look and wound up deleting the browser tab. Something about it felt wrong. Invasive maybe. A big part of him was curious. Another part of him was stern, that part of him reminded him what happened with Natalie and told him to go home.

So Will went home for a while.

He changed and grabbed a bottle of water then sat down on his couch to read.

Not that he was counting, but, Will spent nearly an hour at home before he stuffed some medical supplies and a change of clothes, toothbrush and deodorant in his backpack and left.

He headed to his parents house that he'd grown up in, grateful that he'd headed there first when he saw his mother on the front porch with Endora.

For some reason he didn't want either of them to think he was heading elsewhere in the neighborhood.

Will heard neighborhood kids in a backyard across the street more than saw them.

After he parked on the street and walked up to the house, backpack in hand, he made out Mark resting on the floor of the porch with several pillows, playing with a iPad. A pair of headphones silenced whatever game he was playing for the adults.

If Will's mother was surprised by his appearance she kept it to herself.

She was far more interested in something on the laptop that sat on her knees. Both her and Endora's eyes were on the screen, seated on a old metal couch glider. And very carefully Will sat down on it beside his mother.

"Have you heard," his mother asked.

"I've been at work all day. So I can safely say no."

Will's mother narrowed her eyes, "There were a bunch of homes that got broke into last night. Robbed. The home owners were tied up. It happened just up the street."

Will took the computer from his mother and skimmed the article on a local news website.

"What do you think Endora? Should we join up with Karen tonight?"

Eyes on the screen as he scrolled down, "What's crazy Karen doing now?"

"Roving neighborhood watch parties throughout the night incase of another blackout," Endora helpfully chimed in.

Will's head snapped up, "What?!"

"No, I can't leave the boys. But you can borrow my heavy duty flashlight and flare gun."

Will's mother's eyes lit up.

"Mom you can not join a roving neighborhood mob," Will spoke in no uncertain terms.

His mother ignored him and patted Endora's shoulder, "I think I still have my Halloween costume in the closet. I'll be right back."

Endora didn't ask.

She looked at Will who shouted after his mother's vanishing back as she disappeared in his childhood home. "Mom! You are not dressing up as Catwoman with a flare gun skulking around the neighborhood with crazy Karen!"

Endora thought about it, "When you put it that way...it sounds like a pretty good time."

Will spared her a dirty look as the screen door slammed shut.

"So what do you have against crazy Karen?"

The lapton lid closed with a snap. Will pointed at Endora and went on, "Crazy Karen is a menace. You weren't here when she was on her campaign to install surveillance cameras on every pole in this neighborhood to combat radical nudists. Or when she called in a fake tip to the swat team because her neighbors cat got in her house and peed on her computer. Literally...the swat team was here kicking in doors thinking that one of the FBIs most wanted lived across the street."

Endoras eyebrows rose to impressive new heights. "So what you're telling me is, crazy Karen needs to be put in charge of the angry mob."

"What crazy Karen needs is to be put on some mood stabilizing medication."

Endora could not respond and not for a lack of retort.

A horde of neighborhood kids came running from across the street, the twins in front, clearly with something on their mind.

Snoopy, the mostly hairless of the two, gesture excitedly. "Endora can we spend the night? We're all gonna camp in Tommy's back yard. Everyone will be there!"

No was the first word that came to mind.

However that was not the answer she went with, "Can all four of you go?"

A pause overcame the twins as they peered over at their adoptive brother. Clearly Mark would not be sleeping over anywhere. It was Jun who glanced over at the leader of the group, "Sorry dude, next time. We gotta help Mark out. His stitches were all nasty and infected."

"Wanna see," Hector offered from somewhere within the gaggle of children.

It was then that Will spoke up.

"Hey! No one is touching those stitches. You guys need to go find something else to do that doesn't involve my patient, or setting a squirrel free in crazy Karen's house. Yeah I heard about that Tommy."

There was a brief amount of descension before the group headed back across the street.

It was then that Will asked, "So what's the real reason they can't sleep over?"

Endora pretended to not know what he was talking about.

Will gestured at the sleeping child over on the floor, "He's passed out and will likely be that way all night. It'd probably be less stressful if the rest of your soccer team was out at a sleepover."

"I don't trust Tommy's dad," she confessed, "He's an asshole."

"He is an asshole," Will agreed.

After which he put the laptop down between them, stretched out his long legs and folded his hands behind his head so he was in a more relaxed position. For a moment he could have said that he was content. Granted he hadn't eaten dinner, but it wasn't exactly a pressing need. He glanced over at Endora who watched the small herd of kids vanish into a backyard. When she was sure they'd made it, she caught him looking at her with that odd expression. Like he was unsure.

"So tell me Doctor Halstead," she purred, pulling her legs up beneath her. "What is life like downtown? Are you dating anyone? Taking part in the foodie scene? Would you happen to have season tickets I could rent for a day?"

He laughed, "I can't afford season tickets."

Letting go that he didn't answer all of her questions, she frowned. "I have to think of something to do this weekend with the boys. We can't go paint balling with all those stitches. I might just take them to the zoo or aquarium."

Tomorrow was Saturday and he was off.

But like he told Maggie and April, he wasn't dating anyone. He was just hoping to get through the month without getting himself into more trouble. Yet words came out of his mouth before he could stop them, "Stick Mark in one of those wheelchairs you stole from the hospital. I can meet you downtown for the day."

"I can't ask you to waste your Saturday playing tour guide."

"We'll I'm going to ask that you not go out with the boys and crazy Karen tonight. So I'd say it makes us even."

She laughed then peeked at a big watch on her wrist. "It's already six thirty...I should start getting something together for dinner. What about you? Big Friday night plans for a doctor in the city?"

There was a poker game he'd been invited to and a bar he could hang out with friends in to watch a game.

What came out of his mouth however was a different story entirely.

"I'm probably going to hang around here to keep an eye on the parents. If Ma is going to cruise the neighborhood with a flare gun, it may be best."


	8. Chapter 8

The power had been out for close to three hours by the time Endora got all four boys in bed, teeth brushed and batteries in their flashlights changed to they could read.

Shed changed into a pair of comfy yoga pants with t-shirt, grabbed her iPad and we t outside to read on the stoop, not wanting to miss a minute of the neighborhood patrols.

Once seated outside with a bottle of Snapple at her feet, she noticed Will Halstead our on his parents stoop too, reading something by flashlight. And for a moment she was glad that she hadnt grabbed a flashlight too. Seeing him still in Chicago had thrown her through a complete loop.

She'd hoped he had moved away. Prayed really.

Because she did remember him. Not that she'd admit it. She intended to take it to her grave. She'd been in love with him since she was eight years old in Catechism class all through high school. Absolutely head over heels in love. The extent of her puppy love crush made her cringe as a adult.

That part of her life was done and over, a part of her past where she intended to keep it.

She was a grown woman now with a family of her own and a career.

Seeing her childhood crush in the shape of a attractive doctor must have been some kind of sick joke from the universe. Not to mention she'd put dating on hold thanks to an episode of Doctor Phil devoted to child predators. Pretending she didn't remember him seemed to be the best course of action. It felt like they were equals as adults. She wasnt a teenager too shy to even say hi to him. Besides, she told herself, he was hanging around her house more in the past week than she'd seen him since moving back. So something was working.

"What are you reading?"

Endora glanced up to see he'd moseyed on over without her hearing him. A smile was on his face that she hoped was just for her. Luckily the adult took over before her inner child became paralyzed and she patted the brickwork beside her, "Eat Pray Love. To fill my urge for adventure. I can't just up and move somewhere on a whim now that I have tax deductions."

Even in the dusk, she could just make out the frown on his face.

"What have you got there? Did you get me that coffee table book on the Roaring Twenties I've been wanting?"

Will plopped down beside her, "No, something far more egregious."

He had her interest.

When he shone his flashlight on their high school yearbook, she laughed.

A pair of dogs barked in the distance. People could be heard fighting, talking and walking by in the darkening night.

The blackouts had taken on a semblance of normalcy.

A happy gleeful squee came from Endora. She clapped her hands wildly, "A yearbook! We can revisit the mess that was my hair!" She squeezed him tightly with one arm. "How exciting!"

Intent on finding the pages he'd folded over, Will pointed the flashlight at the book but didn't move. As he flipped through the pages she curled against him for a better look, resting her cheek on his arm. When he came to their individual pictures with names he pointed himself out. Two rows up was her picture, the sight of it made her cringe, "My god look at that hair. I was such a hot mess."

"Do you recognize my picture?"

Yes she did, she leaned closer for a better look at the horrible picture. His hair was a complete mess. But it was still Will.

A doubtful noise came from her lips.

"Ok, what about..." he muttered, flipping through pages, "...this one. Look. That mural painting we all had to do after the incident with the food coloring in the pool."

"I remember that," she smiled, reaching for the book for a closer look at all the smiling faces.

Will pointed out everyone in the picture to include himself. Of course she remembered it well, as if it were yesterday.

"Look at me...I was a slip of a thing," Endora cooed.

"We literally wasted our entire summer painting over graffiti. You have to remember me."

Endora considered showing some mercy. It seemed really important to him that she remembered.

"Did you have that little red loud car that had the stupid bird on the hood?"

Hope filled his voice, "I had a little red mustang."

"Maybe," she murmured.

Will flipped past numerous pictures on the hunt for a specific one, while she enjoyed herself, resting against the bulk of him. He smelled like spicy cologne and astringent hand sanitizer.

When he paused at a picture she felt her stomach drop.

She motioned for him to keep going through the book. But Will paused at the pages for various clubs.

Sighing against him, he could feel her withdraw from him. Warm summer air seemed cool against him where she had previously been. "That was the worst. I shouldn't have gone to school that day but my mother insisted. It was the day after she was diagnosed."

Will could see the pain in her eyes in a candid picture for drama club. What could have been written off as good acting he could see as absolute misery.

Adult him wished younger him had been more in the ball. Younger him had no clue about her distress, or about most things when he thought about it. Older him wasn't one hundred percent better, but had learned a thing or two since high school. So he put the book and flashlight aside and scooted over to close the distance between them. His arm slid around her shoulders and to his great relief she sagged against him.

Before he even thought about it, he pressed his lips to the top of her head and then pulled her tighter against him. Needing that basic human connection.

"So you're sure you don't remember me," he asked after some time, when he was positive she wasn't crying.

It made her laugh against him.

She looked up at him as if to see him from a different angle, caught his chin between her fingers. Then she shook her head. But didn't take back her hand. Her fingers where soft against his reddish stubble. Her thumb brushed over his bottom lip and when it felt like she would take her hand back, he quickly caught it with one of his own.

There was something he was hiding, carrying around with him that he didn't seem ready to share or even confront. To a most intuitive part of her it was clear that he wanted her to stay, he needed her touch even if it was just basic.

Without saying a word, she entwined her fingers with his and leaned into him.


	9. Chapter 9

Something woke Will up from a dead sweaty sleep on the same couch he'd woken up on.

His eyes opened up in near total dark stillness, yet he heard nothing.

No obvious noises came from inside or outside that would have woken Will up, yet, an icy chill filled him. Hairs on his arm rose. Something had most certainly woke him up. He found himself slowly sitting up and looking around the dark room.

Which was then that he heard a distinctive noise come from the front door.

Feet on the front porch followed by the doorknob being turned. It was locked of course. Still, whoever was on the other end tried again, harder the second time.

Will was on his feet and looking around for both his flashlight to aid in his search for a big blunt object he could use as a bat.

From over by the stairs came a desperate whisper, "Will! Will wake up!"

Upon finding his flashlight, he switched it on and shone it over by the stairs though not in Endora's eyes. "I'm up. I'm here. Go call 911 on your cell phone."

On the other side of the front door, that someone began to push against it.

Endora hurried down the rest of the steps and over to Will, "I can't get through."

Numerous thoughts went through his head. Cell tower generators could be down. Or 911 was overburdened with calls. From the frantic nature of her voice, he could only guess that she tried more than once without results. Hysteria tinged her tone and she was talking with her arms too.

Will grabbed her elbow, "Calm down! We'll be ok. Do the boys have a baseball bat or hockey stick?"

Her voice was a hairs breadth away from full blown significant emotional event, "In the garage."

And then she remembered, "I have mace in my purse!" She ran off to the kitchen while he turned his attention back to the front door which had a deadbolt and a chain. Will doubted anyone was getting in. But he heard more then one person outside on the porch and he didn't know if they'd break the windows looking out the front of the house.

In looking around he spotted a fireplace and grabbed a poker, figuring it was the best he could do.

Why hadnt he read the article on his mother's computer?

He had skimmed it and not at parts he could have momentarily found useful.

Why did he write off his mother's concern about home invasions so quickly? Maybe it was her recent obsession with true crime shows?

Endora hurried into the living room and came to a stop beside him. "What do we do now?"

Motion caught their eyes where someone wearing a plastic Halloween mask of Bart Simpson peered in a window.

Without thinking Will shone his high powered flashlight directly at the mask, making the person jump back, hands going immediately to their eyes. Somewhere in the distance came the sound of sirens. Will could tell right away that something terrible had occurred because they were fire and ambulance sirens, but his ears were well trained.

Endora shouted at the locked front door, "We called the cops!"

The thought hadn't even come to his mind and for a moment, Will panicked at the thought of the people on the porch panicking. But the heavy sound of feet on the porch told him that they believed her. Will went to the window and watched several figures run off into the dark early morning.

"Are they gone?" She whispered, finger on the trigger of her pepper spray.

Will watched them vanish, "Yeah."

She scurried over to where he stood by the window to look. He pointed in the direction they went. She leaned into him for a better look. Will peered around and then whispered, "They left something out there...Keep an eye out in case they come back, I'm going to get it."

With a nod she followed him to the front door and with great caution, she opened the door as he slipped out.

Sirens in the distance grew louder. The smell of smoke was in the air.

Endora looked around but saw no one.

When Will hurried inside with a backpack she slammed the door, locked it. "Did they damage my door?"

Flashlight in hand, Will knelt down on the floor to see what was in the pack. "Just a few scratches. It's a sturdy door."

Endora stood above him and peered down.

Both of them could easily make out the contents. Possibly hundreds of zip ties, several tasers, rope, a set of bits for a drill, a lock picking kit, several flashlights and a handgun.

Will quickly stood up.

Her hand covered her mouth, "Oh my god...we should tell the cops. It could be those burglars from yesterday night."

"I'll call my brother tomorrow. He's a detective."

Endora made a face, "Jay?"

Will could hear the distaste in her voice.

"Yeah...he's a total pill, but he'll know what to do with all this stuff." Then it occurred to him, "You remember my brother but not me?"

"He was a complete jerk to me. Of course I remember him."

Will looked heavenward for inspiration, guidance or general encouragement.

"Fine. Call him. Just leave me out of it. What are we going to do until then? What if those people come back?"

As if to prove some cosmic point, more sirens filled the air in the distance.

"I don't think they're coming back," Will expesssed. "Not without their burglary tools. I'm still staying up though just in case." When he pointed the flashlight in her general direction he was greeted to the sight of her walking over to her couch to join him for watch. The honorable thing would have been to assure her everything was fine and to go back to bed. Will however elected not to do that and instead, joined her on the couch. Fully convinced that he was the absolute worst human being ever.


	10. Chapter 10

Monday:

"Doctor Halstead?"

Maggie pursed her lips. It was the second time she tried to get his attention with no luck.

"Will," she touched his shoulder.

Will jumped in his seat then looked over his shoulder, previously enraptured in incredibly fascinating medical records from a patient who traveled the world. His patient literally could have had anything from all the countries she'd visited that year. He'd been unable to rule anything out but kept adding possible diagnoses.

Tracking down Doctor Choi was the next part of his plan. Ethan did specialize in infectious and tropical diseases.

"Your brother is looking for you. He's been waiting for almost an hour. Want me to send him back here?"

Will thought about it and in the end agreed, then told Maggie, "She's been to Afghanistan too recently so it could be a intestinal parasite. Have you seen Choi around? I have a few questions for him."

The thought of intestinal parasites made Maggie grimace.

Will heard her mutter something under her breath about Afghanistan as a tourist destination. And it wasn't long after that did his brother Jay come in the room. He did not share Will's red hair, having their fathers dirty blonde color. More than one person had been surprised to learn the pair were brothers.

"Hey," Jay greeted the back of Will's head. "I've been trying to track you down all weekend."

Will glanced back over his shoulder at his brother. Eyebrows raised before he looked back to the computer, gesturing at a nearby wheeled chair in the small workroom that held a couple computers, printers and books.

"Where were you? I've been calling and went by your apartment and even our parents house."

Telling Jay everything was clearly out of the question.

"Why? You writing a book?"

Jay dropped down on the chair in his plain clothes uniform.

"When our mother drops off a backpack full of evidence in a double homicide and string of home invasions, I cant help but want details. Especially when she told me not to worry where it came from. I had to call Dad. And you know what he told me?"

Will lifted his eyebrows in genuine curiosity.

"Dad told me that you and the dancer you're living with managed to chase away the people our entire department is looking for, and they left their break-in kit behind."

Will rolled his eyes and looked back at the computer, "It was hardly that exciting. Sirens chased them off."

Jay grabbed a nearby pen, "Who is the homeowner? I'll need to speak with them next. Dad didn't know and Mom was being evasive."

Will hesitated, "Endora O'Grady."

Jay did a double take, "Endora? From the neighborhood? Named after the mom from Bewitched? Her brothers and sisters were all named after old tv characters?"

"Yup," Will answered, looking back to the computer.

His brother made a few notes on a piece of paper he pulled from his pocket.

"What time did the attempted break in happen?"

"It was a little after two," Will answered.

Surprise filled Jay's face.

Will spoke up before his brother could say anything, "You work for the city. When are these blackouts going to be over?"

"Not my department. Could you make out how many there were?"

Sighing loudly, Will glanced over to his brother, "Four or five? It was pretty dark. They had masks on if thats helpful. One was Bart Simpson."

When Jay made a note of it, Will figured it must have been.

"So where does Endora work? Ma was sketchy on the details."

With a sense of great amusement, Will gave him the location details.

Jay asked several more questions about that night before leaving. Not without issuing a stern warning about Will returning his messages and calls.

Will in turn waited a few seconds after his brother left before he dug his cell phone from the pocket of his scrub pants, then sent off a quick text message.

"If your brother comes back here to give you hell for tipping off your special friend, I won't hide you." Came Maggie's voice from the doorway.

Will smirked to himself, dropped his phone in his pocket, then glanced back at the head nurse. "I'm not warning her to hide. I'm warning her so she knows. She's in rehearsal today. Somehow I can't imagine her being happy that my brother, whom she is not fond of in the least, stopped by and seeing her not at her absolute best."

Maggie cocked an eyebrow. "That's very good Doctor Halstead. You're learning."

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Will's phone chimed to alert him of a text almost the second he stepped out the ED doors.

Without slowing down he dug it out and unlocked his phone with a few taps of his finger.

His mother had sent him a message.

 _'Endora loaned me her SUV. Going to pick up the boys. Then heading to the army/navy store for supplies to fortify the perimeter. Pick up Endora at the theater for me.'_

Will was almost speechless.

Another blackout was possible that night according to the power company and city.

 _'Ok_.' Was his response and all he could think of saying.

Swinging by the old classic theater was not a problem. It was kind of on his way but he was curious how things went with Jay, or so he told himself.

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The old theater made Will think of all things prohibition and roaring twenties.

After asking a few women and men in various states of dress, everything from active wear to sequins and polka dots, Will found his way to the back area where the dressing rooms allegedly were.

Even backstage the area felt dated, but had modern theater things and equipment he'd seen at concerts.

Eventually he found Endora speaking with two women in their early twenties and one who reminded him of Betty White. The Betty incarnate winked at him when he strolled on over.

Endora gave him a smile before she continued talking about the schedule. From what Will gathered they were new members of the production. And after she finished up detailing the dates on the calendar, she answered their questions, then told them she'd see them tomorrow for another rehearsal.

The younger two left, clearly nervous but excited.

The white haired eighty something year old woman grabbed Will's bottom on her way out. Will jerked suddenly and she gave him a knowing parting wave with blood red nails. A wiggle of her eyebrows confirmed that it was indeed a intentional act.

"That's Madame Divine...our fortune teller for this show. Isn't she a pistol."

Will rubbed the sharp sting on his posterior. "Delightful."

Endora motioned for him to follow, "Come on. I just need to grab my bag and we can go."

Still in his maroon scrubs he followed her through the back of the theater. Through an obvious costume area and mirrored makeup bureaus, lights were all over. When they passed several doors that had names to include the handsy Madame Divine, Endora led him into her private dressing room.

It wasn't quite what he expected.

There was the well lit mirrored desk he could picture her doing hair and makeup at, but, it was covered with paperwork. There was a couch with pretty basic looking yoga pants, a backpack and other clothes covering it.

"Can I assume my brother made a appearance?"

Endora rolled her eyes from where she dug through the many papers. "Yeah he came by...thanks for the heads up by the way. My lipstick needed a touch up." She shook out her hair with one hand then just grabbed all the papers, walked to the couch and stuffed them all in unceremoniously.

Will leaned over the desk and picked up a fake eyelash, "Your eyelashes are fake?"

She reached over to seize the lash.

"These are for the show."

Backpack over one shoulder and eyelash back in its case, Endora glanced around for anything else she may need. When she looked up at him he was staring at her and she couldn't quite tell if it was him looking for false eyelashes on her at that moment. But when she caught him looking and he quickly looked away, she understood. "Will?"

He put a step of distance between them with a step to the right.

"Will."

It wasn't so much just his name, but the way she spoke it, with intention.

In the next moment in time they were connected. Rational thoughts gone. Endora sank her fingers into his hair. Will grabbed handfuls of her shirt. He kissed her, she kissed him. She pushed him back into the wall and pulled him closer by his thick hair, scratching his scalp with her nails. Deepening the kiss with a tilt of his head. In the next second he lifted her up onto the vanity, a makeup case and numerous bottles scattered onto the floor.

Sounds of something glass breaking on the floor sobered them, broke them apart.

Will took a deep steadying breath knowing that cooler heads needed to prevail.

"Do you have a condom?"

Will's heart sped up, "I only have one."

"We'll only need one to see if it's worth a second one," she told him.


	11. Chapter 11

Later that night Will knew he was hurdling headlong into what could be another bad situation if he wasn't careful. And he was indeed being careful. Condoms had been purchased for more use. It was as careful as he could be at that moment in time.

Not since he was a teenager could he remember acting with such reckless abandon.

Especially when he knew just how vulnerable they both were, even if he wouldn't say such a thing out loud.

So, Will decided to give himself that night to live in the moment before he would need to talk to Endora.

Things would have to be figured out, seeing how complex their lives were individually.

Until the blackout ended was a entirely different story.

Which was how Will found himself, yet again, camped out in the living room. But not alone. Not on the couch. And not entirely in the dark.

A little battery powered purple camp lantern provided a dim glow that allowed him to just make out the top of Endora's head.

"What on earth did you just say?"

Endora's head popped up from where it rested on his shoulder. Her eyes were wide with uncertainty, "What? What did I just say?"

She'd gone limp in his arms and had been drifting pretty close to sleep when the offending words slipped out. He could not help but smile at them and her, "What do you think you said?"

The concern on her face made him want to tease her a bit.

Slowly, thoughtfully, she licked her lips, "I didn't call you by a different name did I?"

When he laughed she knew he had been leading her on.

She swatted at him but didn't move. Instead she propped herself up on her elbows beside him and kicked her feet almost playfully. "Eric. You know, that really hot guy on CSI Miami."

Will leaned up quickly and caught her mouth in a sudden deep kiss that stole her breath.

Against her mouth he spoke again, but not before tracing fingertips over her cheek, along her jaw and down the hollow of her throat. "You were mumbling as you fell asleep. Profanities. Which I think is just adorable."

She was quiet, still

Will's fingers slid around the back of her neck to pull her closer, "You thought you said your husbands name? Didn't you?"

Again, she was quiet.

"What was his name?"

"Brandon," she whispered.

Softly Will pressed his lips against hers, a flutter really, "I can promise you I'd notice if you called me by that name."

He could feel more than see her smile.

So he could have kicked himself when his next words made her smile vanish.

"You never talk about him."

Guilt swelled in her chest. She could almost feel herself deflate. Grabbing for a couch throw that had wound up on the floor, she wrapped it around herself and before he could finish telling her that she didn't have to say anything, she pressed her fingers to his lips to silence him, needing to finally unburden herself.

"Right before he left to go, you know, to work, we had a huge fight."

Will was silent.

"I found out he had a girlfriend. He swore to me she meant nothing and he'd break it off with her, like always. This was a reoccurring theme. It was why we moved from Chicago out to California. Brandon loved women."

Still silent, Will reached over and rested a hand on her blanket covered back.

"So we had this terrible fight. I told him I wanted a divorce. I was so mad and said things I still regret. And then he died and I was so mad. I felt nothing but anger at his funeral, which has got to make me the absolute worst. All I feel is guilt about what I told him and when people ask about him, I have to make myself act like he was the absolute love of my life." With a bitter laugh she rested her chin on her hand, "I am the worst. I'm a complete mess. Everything I touch seems to fall into utter chaos."

Feeling the need to say something, but nothing even remotely comforting came to mind, Will rubbed her back in soothing circles. "I violated a DNR and nearly killed my medical career."

"Nice," she replied, genuinely impressed with the severity of his workplace mistake. She then leaned against his side and rested her chin on his shoulder. "So tell me Will. Is this just going to be a one time fun time during the blackout? Or are you thinking of combining our chaos for some sort of recreational purpose?"

"Bring me lunch tomorrow."

"Bring you lunch tomorrow?"

"Lunch is easy. I don't think either of us could botch something as simple as lunch."

A little smile quirked at the corner of her lips. She leaned forward to press her lips to his softly. His lips fluttered against hers, he tilted his head to deepen the kiss and when he brushed her lip with the tip of his tongue, his other hand reached around in the dark for one of the little packets.

"Can I do it," she breathed against his lips.

When his fingers finally came across one, he placed it in her hand. Thus causing her to end their kiss so she could concentrate. And while she peeled the foil wrapper off, his hands traveled under the chenille couch throw around her shoulders. When she began to gently unroll the contraceptive on him, his lips danced softly over her shoulder. Her hands muddled his mind and quite literally took his breath away. Will wrote it off as not having been intimate with someone for a while.

As soon as he was positive that she was done, he crawled over her, their mouths pressed against the other but not in a kiss.

Her head hit the hardwood floor and it didn't register. Her hands were greedy in their exploration of his flesh. His weight on her was almost delicious in a way.

It wasn't too long before his name came from her lips.


	12. Chapter 12

Voices woke Endora up from where she'd been sleeping soundly on the couch.

All the voices.

All the voices were in the kitchen, she was almost positive of it.

"So why does it go in his belly?" She heard Jun ask and found herself stumbling into a fully upright position as a result. She also found herself relieved to see she'd pulled on sleeping shorts and a t-shirt sometime in the early morning hours.

"Because this part of the human body can absorb the insulin best," she heard Will explain.

Shoving hair from her face, she padded out of the living room and into the kitchen area which was filling with sun light. In said kitchen were all four boys, mostly in their pajamas, watching Will finish giving Hector insulin.

Seeing Will in just red scrub pants told her he hadn't been up for long. His hair stuck up in several directions and his feet were bare. Snoopy greeted her with a one arm side hug and what he told her pretty much explained why Will was up so suddenly.

"Your doctor friend wouldn't let us test all our blood sugars."

Her eyebrows rose pretty high.

In a pair of Captain America sleeping shorts, Mark chimed in, "Yeah. What if we're diabetic too? You'd think he'd be all for preventative testing."

Three fingers were held up and only two had a telltale skin prick.

"I'm sure if anyone else here was diabetic there would be symptoms." Endora told them with a grimace at the blood.

Those three faces looked over to Will for confirmation.

As Will capped the needle he inquired of his audience. "Is anyone extra thirsty? Hungry? Expiencing blurred vision? Frequent urination? Nausea? Vomiting or bedwetting?"

All the little heads looked to one another and back, considering the question.

Finally Snoopy spoke up, "No more that usual I guess."

With that settled, Hector looked over at Endora, "I'm hungry. What's for breakfast?"

She took note that the power was still out.

"I'll dig through the cupboards. Go get dressed. We have to leave for school soonish."

Four young faces looked at her in horror.

Endora gestured all around, "Powers out guys. There's nothing in the fridge and no time to go to the food store."

"That's assuming the food store has power back," Will added.

All four of the boys ignored that sentiment.

It was Jun who asked, pure outrage in his voice, "Tuesday morning is always waffle morning."

Endora shrugged in response.

"This has gone too far," Snoopy added.

"I am so writing a letter to our congressman," Mark seethed.

Endora motioned for them to get going, "You can do that on the ride to school. Don't forget your socks today."

She watched them stomp their way out of the kitchen, descent brewing with every step. After which a hand came to her head. For a moment she totally forgot about Will. No waffles was a total blow to morale.

"You never mentioned Hector being diabetic."

She looked up at his voice.

"What? Oh. Yeah...it's not a big deal."

Will did not look entirely convinced.

"I have the webmd app on my phone."

Will could not help himself. He both rolled his eyes and rubbed his face with both hands. Before he could say anything, his cell phone up on the counter went off. He held up a finger for her to hold on to that thought, then went over and checked to see it was the hospital.

He answered the call and after a few quick words, hung up.

Will then looked at Endora, "I'm going in early. Will you come for lunch?"

A smile lowly curled over her lips. She watched him go over to the entranceway to grab his scrub top that was on the floor. Which he quickly pulled over his head then looked over at her for an answer.

"I'll text you when I head your way. Sound ok?"

He nodded and grabbed his bag.

Will turned to go, paused, then walked over to her to kiss her quickly, so quickly she almost missed it. It was quick. As if he wanted to do it before she changed her mind. He then hurried out, locking the front door behind him,

Endora waved then looked back to the kitchen, not thrilled with the idea of granola bars, nuts and fruit for breakfast, again.


	13. Chapter 13

The cafeteria was a ways into the hospital, so normally Will just ate from one of the food trucks outside the ED or brought his own lunch. However on that particular day he headed into the recesses of the hospital when a lull came.

When he eventually found his way into the cafeteria he came to a stop. Eyes looked around the large cafeteria for a specific face.

Said face was spotted at a nearby small table and not alone.

Endora sat across from Jackson, a nurse from the cardiac cath lab known for his special way with women. He was a big fan and always looking to make a new special friend.

Jackson flirted mercilessly.

Endora sat, her full attention was given to him as she did to everyone she spoke to. Will had seen her interact that way with his mother, himself and the boys. Still he couldn't stop the inkling of hostility that rose in him. Before he knew it he approached the table and was rewarded with a detailed description of Tommy's new muscle car.

Endora appeared as interested in it as she was with his mother's attempts to set her up with a deacon at their church, as well as Mark's collection of bugs.

Polite, but noncommittal, ever so slightly suspicious.

Two salads sat in front of Jackson and Endora.

"You're in my seat," Will announced upon coming to a stop at the table.

Both faces looked up.

Endora gave Will a smile. Jackson just looked confused.

With a gesture of her newly touched up nails in Will's direction, she smiled softly, "Have you met Doctor Halstead? He's my neighbor and has been kind enough to help out with my children after the bus accident."

Jackson frowned at mention of children.

When he looked back at Will, the red headed MD jerked his thumb over his shoulder. "Go. Now."

Still, Jackson grabbed a pen from his grey scrub shirt and wrote his number on a paper napkin. "Give me a call. I'm off this weekend. Maybe we could...you know...meet up or something."

"Aren't you seeing Lynette from accounting this weekend?" Will demanded, arms crossed, eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.

Ignoring his coworker, Jackson made a phone gesture with his hand motioning for her to call him. Then smacked his shoulder into Will on his way by.

Endora glanced at the napkin, "Oh my."

Practically throwing himself in the empty chair, Will grabbed the napkin then fought the urge to run after Jackson and make the man eat his note. Beneath his name and number was a additional note, 'XOXO Full seven inches.'

In the end, he balled it up and threw it in the general direction of the trash.

It fell short on the floor.

"Oh don't pout Will. You're far superior than dear Jackson. Eat your salad. We have bigger problems than that walking ego."

Will frowned at her.

Her salad was half gone. So when she pierced a few pieces of lettuce and chicken with a fork, she told him, "Your mother set me up on a date."

Will's frown grew, "You cannot be serious. I thought you werent dating anyone till the boys were out of the house." He decided to leave out her child predator concern from the episode of Doctor Phil. Which if he ever came across that man...

"So I won't be home tonight. Your mother is watching the boys. I figured you could go have a poker night or something with your homies."

Lunch forgotten about, he leaned over the small table, "So you're actually going through with this?"

She chewed on a crouton.

"Your mother set me up with Patrick. From church. She said you know him."

Wills concern was gone but not his annoyance.

"Patrick? From church? That guy who works at the tax place?"

Endora nodded in bored confirmation.

Taking a deep breath, Will tore the plastic top off the container his salad was in. This was not how he wanted to spend lunch or what he wanted to talk about just yet. Before he could even think up what to say, she spoke up.

"Don't make that face. Your Mom has done so much for me, I couldn't say no. So I'll go out and have dinner. That's it. I can scare this Patrick off before dessert knowing my luck with first dates. You have nothing to worry about. I just wanted to tell you so you weren't surprised if you came by tonight."

Will wanted to say something reassuring, or tell her he cared for her.

Nothing came out along those lines.

What Will did say was, "Patrick?"

A smirk came over her face.

"Oh yes. Your mother thinks a nice Catholic girl like me should meet a nice Catholic boy."

"What am I? Chopped liver?" Will wanted to know, perhaps a bit heatedly.

Endora hesitated.

Will picked up on it immediately, "What? What on earth did my mother say?"

Very diplomatically, Endora picked her words. "Your mother said you were hung up on a doctor at the hospital here."

Lunch was going downhill at a even faster rate than he could have ever imagined. Will covered his face with his hand and briefly pondered sending his mother on a month long cruise.

Her foot escaped from her pump and she touched his calf under the privacy of their table. As she rubbed the firm muscle she spoke very calmly, "Don't worry about it Will. I would never endanger my friendly benefits with you for a forty year old man who lives in his mother's basement. You are far more rewarding on a strictly entertaining level. I mean...you've saved me from having to buy more batteries this month."

Will couldn't help himself, a smile curled over his lips. He brandished his fork at her in a suggestive manner.

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Will couldn't help himself.

He went to his parents house after work.

In the living room were the boys, seated in a circle around his father, seated in his favorite chair, as he regaled them with war stories.

But it was his mother who he was looking for, and he found her in the kitchen happily making chili dogs for dinner. A pot of chili was on the stove cooking. A plate of hot dogs was ready to go out on the grill.

"Will," his mother greeted with a smile, wearing her pink polka dot apron. "What are you doing here? Not that it matters...can you start the grill. This chili is pretty much done."

Having changed into jeans and a grey t-shirt, Will had gone home and made a attempt to have a guys night in...but the thought of Endora eating dinner with another man, giving some other guy her attention and maybe even laughing at his jokes, drove him crazy.

Even if it just was to be polite to his mom.

He would go home.

Eventually.

When all was right in his world again.

"Ma! How could you set Endora up with Patrick?"

Will's mother rolled her eyes, "He is a nice young man who has a job, wants to settle down and isn't a sex offender. I even went online to check the website. Oh Will...there are so many bad men on that website. You would be shocked. I emailed the link to your brother so he can see."

Will could not believe it.

"Ma. Patrick lives in his mother's basement with twelve cats and all the windows lined with tinfoil."

She turned back to the chili, "He is a perfectly nice young man. And even if it isn't a match made in heaven, Endora still needs a night out."

Will was not impressed.

"Mom it's a weeknight and in a few hours we're probably going to have another blackout. What is so important that could not wait till the weekend? I'm sure Dad could have told those kids how he made the grass grow green in Vietnam on a Friday night."

Stirring the pot, his mother sassed right back, "Because tonight is her birthday. And they'll be home before the blackout. You know Patrick is afraid of the dark." She was about to add that Patrick was a deacon at church, but when she turned, Will was already on his way out of the kitchen.

"William Halstead!" She threatened, "You better not interfere with their date! Patrick's mom promised to fill in for me at the church festival this weekend! Will!"


	14. Chapter 14

"I mean, I really want to take my cats into the professional pageant world. But it is so expensive and mother insists I pay the electric bill." Patrick explained, "So I am studding my seven male cats out online."

Endora could not believe it.

She was fascinated.

Patrick was a stunningly handsome creature. Blonde wavy hair, bright blue eyes, chiseled features, over six feet tall.

Then he had told her all about his cats, in song.

It was then she knew that she was in store for a truly unique dinner out.

Before that moment in time, she had no idea a cat could be pimped out either.

With her elbows on the table and chin resting in both hands, she listened to him talk, learning more than she could have imagined. People around them at the western themed bar and grill he'd taken her to openly stared. They stopped being discreet about it some time back.

Maybe dinner would not be so unbearable she pondered. At least she wouldn't be bored. Her eyes hardly wandered when Patrick began to explain how he milked a cat, when something caught her eye that made her glance up.

Will was there.

She couldn't believe it...for a second or two. Then she did and was a tad pleased to see him, especially in those jeans with that grey shirt fitting so deliciously on his chest. Her birthday was just getting better by the minute.

"Will! How're are you doing man?" Patrick greeted most enthusiastically.

Will reached down to shake his hand.

Then Will gestured vaguely towards the back of the restaurant, "You drive a red smart car? Right? With stickers of cat paw prints all over it?"

"Yes. I just got that decal work done. Nice huh?"

"Dude it just got towed."

One of Endora's eyebrows rose to significant heights.

Patrick jumped up and began to leave, but then he stopped and looked back at Endora guiltily.

"I just finished eating, I can take her home." Will offered, "Endora lives a house up from my mom."

Patrick thanked him profusely then apologized to Endora, after which he hurried out of the restaurant.

"Did you have him towed," she asked, not lifting he chin from her palms.

His lack of a response confirmed it for her.

"Did you order yet?"

Endora shook her head.

"Come on. I'll take you out for birthday sushi to that place you love."

For just a moment she hesitated before she held out a hand, which he took to help her up from the table. Had he not been giving her such a heated look she would have been touched by the gesture.

The two then walked through the western themed establishment in silence, out the front doors under a set of longhorn horns.

Once out in the warm summer early evening, Will put a hand on the small of her back to steer her towards his car. In the front of the restaurant instead of the back, he hadn't wanted to park near Patrick's car when he had it towed. Just in case Patrick asked for a ride. Will knew exactly how horrible of a person he was and had already scheduled himself to go to confession ASAP.

He steered her to the front passenger door and then climbed in the drivers side.

Yet he did not start his car.

Instead, he looked over at Endora as she hooked her seatbelt on.

"Why didn't you tell me it was your birthday today?"

She heard him but continued to buckle herself in. Softly she shrugged, "My parents are gone. None of my brothers or sisters live in this state." When she looked up at him she gave him a sad smile. "I didn't want to pressure you either. It's not a big deal. Really."

Before he even knew it he had leaned over and wrapped his arms around her.

She looked so sad and broken.

"It's not ok. You deserve to celebrate your birthday with loved ones."

At his words she sort of just collapsed against him, as if strings holding her up had been cut. No tears came. Endora felt like she had no more left inside of her to cry. Instead she just felt tired, exhausted. Sagging into Will was comforting. He was big enough that he enveloped her so it felt as if he could offer her a break from the storm of life. He smelled super clean like a hospital. Very much like that liquid hand sanitizer. But, she didn't care.

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"Are you sure you don't want some? There's nothing raw in my rolls. Just cucumber, imitation crab and cream cheese."

Will eyed the chopsticks extended across the small table with a piece of sushi between them.

The restaurant she and the boys were so fond of was a tiny family run place. Their table was so small that their legs touched. Will was surprised at how intimate it felt considering their previous night together.

"That sounds wildly unhealthy," he told her, but leaned forward a smidge to capture it between his teeth.

Infront of him was a noodle dish that he was hopelessly devoted to, and planned to return for more of in his near future. Still he could not help but appreciate the sweet creamy sushi with a hint of cucumber.

"Don't judge me," she answered without any heat. Quickly she picked up a piece for herself, saying nothing when Will snagged another piece with his chopsticks.

"Why don't you and the boys crash out with me this weekend? We can do stuff around the city and they can camp in my living room. If we're going to be out of power another weekend, we can do it at my place. Plus those criminals are extra busy on weekends and aren't robbing apartments."

Endora chewed thoughtfully, "Maybe. I have sleeping bags for them. I do have a show Saturday night...you'd have to keep an eye on the boys."

Will nodded but then he asked, "What if the blackout goes through the weekend?"

"We have battery operated lights, glow sticks and stuff. We're doing blackout shows at night for people who don't want to do afternoon shows."

As if on cue, the lights in the restaurant failed.

Flamesless candles, battery operated lights and battery paper lanterns strategically around the restaurant were already on.

Will and Endora briefly paused, but kept eating as if nothing happened.

When they arrived they'd been briefed by the owner of new blackout pay ahead policy and the blackout plan.

"So then...like this?"

"Almost exactly like this," she confirmed.

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"Crap...where did we park Will?"

Will looked around the shockingly dark area behind the buildings where they'd eaten. Chicago without electricity was darker than he could have ever imagined.

"I keep forgetting to put new batteries in this keyfob," he confessed.

A chuckle came from her and then Will noticed she wasn't right beside him.

In the dark he reached out for her, only to find her when a soft glow from her phone appeared a few steps ahead of him. He hurried after her, pulling his own phone from the back pocket of his jeans.

His fingers sank into the back of her dress to keep track of her in the night.

When she tripped on something, she began to laugh at the audacity of it all.

"Oh. There! My cars over there!"

His hand slid down her back, hooked around her waist and pulled her along behind him.

The two made their way over to the dark car in a darker parking lot, and only when they were right beside the passenger doors did Endora turn in his arms. She wrapped her arms up around his shoulders, pulling him down to kiss him.

He was quite receptive. Keys in hand, he returned her kiss and reached down to cup her bottom in his hands. The keys pressed into one cheek through the fabric of her dress, not comfortably. Endora didn't seem to notice.

Even in the sweltering night, the temperature grew considerably. The kiss between the two grew quickly, evolved faster than either could hope to control.

When she found herself pushed against his car roughly, a gasp escaped from her lungs at the action. His name escaped from her lips. His hands began to lift up the hem of her skirt. Her fingers travelled down into the waist of his jeans. His mouth nibbled at her throat. She hissed, "Get in the back seat and pull on a condom. You have a condom right? Tell me you have a condom."

Will kissed her soundly on the mouth, "I have two condoms on me. Birthday condoms."

A smile grew over his lips, against his mouth. "Is that a special condom?"

"So special...I'll show you."


	15. Chapter 15

Much later that night...

Will and Endora sat side by side on the top step of her front porch.

The neighborhood was dark from that nights blackout. Only the moon provided a source of light. The two had been outside just long enough that their eyes had adjusted, long enough that the moon provided more than enough illumination.

Inside and upstairs the boys were in bed asleep.

"And it was a parasite? Like...an actual for reals parasite? Like an animal would get?" Endora asked, shocked at what Will had told her, the glass of iced tea between her hands long forgotten.

Their arms and knees touched in a basic, yet intimate sort of way.

Perhaps it was the dark, or their earlier evening together. But the two found themselves in a state of companionable bliss.

"A for reals intestinal parasite," Will confirmed.

Endora just could not believe it. "Where did it come from? I didn't think people got those anymore."

After he took a sip from his beer, Will went on, feeling more than a little pleased to talk about his day. Hearing about Endora's new nipple tassels for her job was both unsettling and arousing, then that was a little confusing. Later he would ponder work related sequined lingerie and it's new place in his life.

Until then, intestinal parasites were a far more comfortable topic.

"Well sanitary conditions in Afghanistan are somewhere between horrible and nonexistent according to Ethan, he was in the navy. This paired with a lack of even basic medical care in many areas has brought back diseases and conditions not see in decades, or longer. The intestinal parasite my patient had had not been seen in the West since the late eighteen hundreds."

"Christ," she remarked. Then asked, "So what happened?"

"Ethan and I switched patients. He'd dealt with that particular parasite in the past and I took his accidental staple gun discharge."

Endora nearly spilled her glass of tea as it neared her lips. "Who accidentally discharges a staple gun?!"

"Well alcohol was involved," Will explained.

When she laughed loudly he glanced down at the top of her head. Her hair was pulled up messily, practically on the top of her head. He just could not help himself. He pressed his mouth against her hair and whispered how far over the legal limit the guy was, but he couldn't even lie to himself, it was all so he could smell her hair. Whatever shampoo she used smelled amazing and was driving him crazy.

A flashlight beam bounced into her yard, followed by Will's mom.

"Endora! Thank goodness you're up!"

Before Will could even comprehend that his mother was up at midnight thirty, she had wedged a place between the two of them, unceremoniously pushing Will aside. He almost dropped his beer.

"Ma!" He protested to no one in particular.

His mother placed a hand on Endora's knee, she was a little out of breath from her hurried trek up he sidewalk. "Crazy Karen's House was robbed after dinner!"

Endora gasped loudly, stunned.

Even Will was shocked, "She eats pretty early. So that would have been before the blackout?"

Wills mother turned to him and nodded. "They beat her up too. She got taken to the hospital by ambulance. I called, but since I'm not family they won't tell me anything. So tomorrow you'll have to get me a visitors pass."

"Oh my god..." Endora breathed.

"They're escalating." Will's Mom nodded, using the term she'd heard her son Jay use. "They're getting more brazen and violent and now not even waiting for the blackout. We need to be vigilant Endora."

"I assume her husband went to the hospital with her," Will inquired.

His mother nodded, "Yeah. I called their kids to tell them what happened too." Patting Will's knee, she added, "I'm so glad you've been camping out on Endora's couch in case those men come back."

Neither of them had a response for that remark.

"Oh...before I forget, how was your date with Patrick?"

A blush crept over a Endora's face that she was glad the night hid. Softly she answered, "It went...until his car was towed."

Will's Mom was quiet for a moment and then she turned to swat at her son. "How could you!"

One swat landed sharply on his chest before he leaned out of the way to avoid the others. "Ma. Ma! Stop, I had no choice. When I got there he was telling Endora how he milked his male cats and sold their genetic material on eBay."

A grossed out noise came from his mom.

Endora patted her arm, "Don't worry. Your son took me out for sushi and treated me for my birthday. So I didn't spend it alone. Will was great company."

Will could sense his mother's displeasure waning.

"Ok." She sighed, "I'll find someone else, someone better for this weekend. Don't you worry."

Endora said nothing, picking up on Will's irritation.

"Ma...come on. Endora and I have plans this weekend."

Mrs Halstead looked over at Will sharply, "What kind of plans?"

Will went blank.

"I wanted to spend the weekend in the city with the boys. Plus those guys are robbing houses all weekend, not apartments. It'll be safer I think. I'll take them to the aquarium and all over. Maybe a baseball game. We'll camp out on the floor in sleeping bags. It'll be fun." Endora told her, finding herself looking forward to a weekend away and not wanting to see anyone else.

"The boys will enjoy that," she agreed and then turned to her son, "And where will you be this weekend?"

Will had an answer, a snarky one that would make his Irish ancestors proud.

"Will's staying with us. Your son has been so wonderful with the boys. I almost died when Marks stitches got infected. Hectors sugar was a bit out of whack from the stress and all that medicine they're all taking. I don't know what I'd do if he wasn't around and don't worry. I gave him a bunch of tickets to the show as a thank you."

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"Do you think my mom knows? Or suspects?" Will asked, flat on his back on a pile of blankets and pillows by a fireplace with a few lit candles.

Endora didn't even look up from the saucy book she was reading on her iPad.

"First off and most importantly, I think we should decide if we're going to pretend that things are strictly platonic. Or if we're going to tell people that we've just started to see each other and leave it at that. And then we can broach the subject of that majestic creature that is your mother."

Will rolled his head to look up at her, his eyes narrowed in the soft glow.

Her eyes remained on her book.

He threaded his fingers together behind his head, "I guess there is a vague beauty to that latter statement. And would probably lead to less gossip around here."

She made a noise that he interpreted as positive.

"What are you reading," he asked, wondering what could have her attention so much.

Finally she glanced down at him, "Promise not to laugh?"

"No," he answered honestly, amused.

"Wild and Unbelievable Tales from the Emergency Room," Endora told him, holding his gaze.

Will's grin grew with every word.

"What's so funny?"

He shook his head and curled his finger at her, "Come here. I'll tell you a story."

One of her eyebrows rose but she turned off her tablet and then curled down beside him. "What kind of a story is it?"

"It's a love story..."

Endora smiled.

"...about two people who have amazing sex..."

She rested her chin on his chest and listened attentively.

"...but one night the people have a most tragic accident and have to go to the hospital."

Endora narrowed her eyes, "What kind of accident?"

Will lifted his hands from behind his head and then gestured with his hands, "Their piercings in two very special places got stuck together."

She gasped, both her hands covered her mouth, "No!"

"Oh yes. They came to the ED still connected. It was so romantic."


	16. Chapter 16

Sharon Goodwin looked around her emergency department for that one red headed doctor that never failed to bring excitement to her day.

Whether it was good or bad depended entirely on the day.

On that day he hadn't done anything wrong. In fact, it was her boss who had gotten a call from a police captain and now she was a woman on a mission.

Quickly she spotted Will talking with Doctor Rhodes, both of whom were preparing for three patients on their way in by ambulance. All three had a encounter with the home invaders. The fire department had also been called to the scene. Details were a little vague and the two doctors were discussing strategy.

"Doctor Halstead."

Both men looked at Sharon, both were a little surprised having been so caught up in their discussion they didn't notice her approach.

"I need you to go clock out for the rest of the day."

Neither man could hide their surprise.

"What? Why?"

Sharon motioned for him to follow her into a more private area. She could see the unease on his face and could only guess at what sort of trouble he assumed he was in.

When she was sure they wouldn't be overheard, she calmly explained to Will what she'd been told on the phone. "Your mother is one of the people being brought in."

Will's eyes widened in shock, concern and then possibly irritation or something close.

"Is my mother ok?"

Sharon nodded, "Yes. Your mother has a few burns from what I've heard. She is being brought in as a precaution." Will opened his mouth to ask, but Sharon held up her hands to silence him so she could go on. "I don't know much. What I do know, is your mother and two friends encountered the home invaders. The district attorney wants everything done by the book. That's why you aren't working for the rest of today. Of course you can see your mother after she's been treated and interviewed."

For a moment or so, Will was quiet.

After that he asked, "Do you know what happened? Anything?"

Sharon hesitated.

Will was calm. Will had not argued with her and when she motioned for him to follow, he did. He didn't argue when he realized she was taking him to clock out.

"From what I understand, she was going to pick up a friend for lunch. That friends home was being burgled when she arrived. Some sort of a altercation took place. Your mother did call 911. Somehow a fire was started. Neighbors heard shots being fired. Its still early. We'll know more soon."

Sharon then placed her hand on his shoulder, "Do you want me to page Charles?"

Will shook his head as she expected.

She then watched him clock out and led him back to the station in the center of the ED where Maggie sat behind a computer.

Sharon didn't need to ask. Will said it before she thought of a diplomatic way to phrase her statement. "I'll stay behind here. I won't get in the way. I'll even stay here until Maggie gives me the all clear. Just don't send me home."

Sharon looked to Maggie who gave her friend a nod, "I'll make sure he's good."

No sooner had Sharon left did the doors to the ED open and Will get a good look at his mother's friend Marge.

Marge looked terrible.

The silver haired woman was wheeled in on a stretcher with a significant head injury. Blood stained most of her hair, her blouse. She held her obviously broken arm at a unnatural angle. An oxygen mask was on her spot smudged face. She was clearly in shock.

Unhappily Will crossed his arms.

He then watched his mother get wheeled in next.

An oxygen mask on her face too, although she was fighting with the paramedic in a attempt to shout at the third person from the 911 call who had yet to come in.

Will could easily make out singe burns on his mother's clothing. Small burns in a spritz type pattern decorated her arms, clothing and face. Not that she seemed to notice. Infact, his mother was doing her best to shout through the oxygen mask as a paramedic did his very best to keep her in the stretcher.

Will fought the urge to both go to his mother and roll his eyes.

"You ok," Maggie asked.

"Yeah," he answered, then he sighed as he mother swatted at the paramedic. "Of course she's the worst patient ever."

Maggie couldn't help but smile at his frustration.

When the next patient was wheeled in, Will sagged against the counter. He watched Endora get wheeled in covered in a significant amount of blood. A bloody hand held blood soaked bandages to her nose area. Will noticed that one of her shoes was missing but that leg was moving, letting him know that she was conscious. Her white jeans were both smudged with soot and stained with blood.

As she was wheeled by he caught a glimpse of her black cherry hair.

XXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXX

"Mom? You ok?"

Mrs Halstead looked up from the pillow where she had been resting her head as she rested her burning eyes. The smoke had done a number to irritate them, even though she'd only been around the fire briefly.

A smile came over her face as she saw her son come into her room in the ED.

A sense of pride filled her at the sight of his burgundy scrubs. Her son was a doctor.

She'd never get tired of saying that.

"I'm fine sweetie," she smiled, holding her arms out for a hug.

The smell of smoke on her made Will's eyes water.

"They won't let me go home yet. Can you believe it? I'm completely fine."

Before Will sat down on the edge of her bed, he looked her over for signs of injury. How lucky he was that she wasn't hurt worse struck him. If she'd come in with Endora's injuries, he didn't know how she'd fare.

His hand found hers, "Everyone is just being extra official for when these guys are caught and it goes to trial."

She grumbled in displeasure.

"Tell me what happened? I thought you guys were going for lunch at church."

His mother squeezed his hand. It wasn't a weak squeeze, but he could tell she wasn't at one hundred percent.

"Oh Will," she sighed, "We were just picking up Marge. We went to go knock on her door and heard her screaming. Next thing I knew her front door opened and there were two men." Then she amended, "Masked men. You know, with those ski masks."

He nodded that he did indeed know.

"Endora told me to get help. She fought with them and I went to the car," she explained, seeing she had his full attention. "I saw them drag her into Marge's house. I didn't call 911 right away, I was too worried. I thought they were hurting her too. So then I remembered I had the shotgun with flares in the trunk."

Wills eyes widened.

"I didn't want to leave it at home with your father. He'd never give it back." She then explained, and went on with, "So I went back. I went in and saw Endora sitting on one of the guys. She was banging his head into the ground."

Wills eyes widened even more.

And then she said, "So I fired a warning shot with the flare shotgun...but how was I supposed to know those things explode?"

One of Will's hands covered his face.

But there was more.

"I thought something was wrong with that flare. And a couple of the guys were running away. But to be sure I shot another one. And that one exploded too. So now I know that flares explode, which is good to know for future use."

"Ma..." Will cried, his tone saying more than that one word.

"It's ok son. They ran off. But the house was on fire. So Endora and I went to go untie Marge and help her get out. When we got outside I called 911. I mean, I had to, Marge was a bloody mess...is Marge ok?"

Will's hand fell down on hers and he gave it a squeeze, "Yeah Mom, shes going to be ok. She'll need surgery to fix her arm and she's been admitted."

"What about Endora?"

Will shrugged, "I don't know yet. I came in here to check on you."

Looking around the small room, Wills mom shifted in the uncomfortable hospital bed. "Can you go find out and then come back to tell me? If she's gonna be here all afternoon I'll have to have your father pick the boys up."

"Are you sure," he checked.

Exuberantly she nodded, then motioned for him to go. "Hurry. We have to be there for her now, she doesn't have any family left here."


	17. Chapter 17

Will didn't have to walk far, although he did have to wait close to fifteen minutes until two detectives left the room in the ED.

After they left he gave it a few more minutes before he knocked, then went in.

Sharon was nowhere in sight.

In the small fully equipped room he found Endora on a stretcher with her barefoot dangling off the side of the bed, swinging in a almost rhythmic way. Her bloody hand gingerly touched a bandage on her face. Some of her clothes were on the floor and she appeared to be looking at her nails.

"Those held up incredibly well," he commented.

Unable to help herself, Endora rolled her head on the pillow to look at him. Allowing him to see a black eye well on its way to textbook shiner. He could make out stitches up along her hairline, on her eyebrow, along the side of her nose. There was a scrape on her chin and a distinctly coppery smell in the air.

"Didn't they," she breathed, "Dante is so getting a big tip when I see him to fix these."

Dried blood clung to her face in some spots.

Will could make out swelling around her nose which could have been broken, or not.

He was itching to get his fingers on a tablet.

"How's Your Mom?"

"Asking about you," Will told her as he closed the rest of the distance.

He could see that it visibly pained her to smile.

"Did anyone give you anything for pain?"

She shifted, the sheet over her moved and it was then that Will saw the bandage. He didn't give it a second thought before lifting the sheet to see what he could see.

Mostly around a bandage about the size of his hand he saw red blistered flesh on her thigh. There were dots peppered around her stomach and side of small red burns he assumed must have been from the flare.

"I didn't want anything. The last thing I need is to be uncomfortable and throwing up."

Since there wasn't a tablet in sight, he had no other option but to ask. "Any broken bones?"

"No, thank god. I have rehearsals the rest of the week and shows Friday and Saturday."

To which Will frowned.

A hand covered with dried blood, stiletto nails chipped went up. "Don't even...I'm so going to work. Makeup will cover most of this and the rest of it will be fine with some Tylenol, massage therapy and hot baths."

His frown grew, "I don't know about that with a severe burn..."

She made a face then followed his gaze. After which she waved him off and then instantly regretted it, "Oh that's no burn. One of those bastards bit me. Some forensic odontologist is on his way to take special pictures and take measurements."

No longer worried about the risk of infection to a burn, Will lifted the end of the bandage for a look.

It wasn't as bad as he initially thought. Granted his first thought had been of Ted Bundy.

It was obviously a human bite. But it had been through the denim of her jeans, so it was red and bruising, no skin had been broken or was missing. From the looks of it he could tell it'd be bruised for a good while.

He wanted, needed even, to touch her and feel the warm aliveness if her skin. But looking at her was enough to tell him she'd need to make that desicion. So he reached his hand out and was eternally grateful when her hand grasped his. Sure she did squeeze him a bit uncomfortably. A part of him recognized that she wouldn't be aware of it. She'd be too upset, too traumatized to realize.

"Connor did a good job on your stitches. You won't scar up at all if I say so myself."

She tried to smile, "The boys will be so disappointed."

All she really wanted was to leave. She wanted out of the hospital and to go home. She wanted to crawl into her own bed, pull the covers up over her head and take a six hour nap.

But she couldn't. She had to adult. Adulting was the worst.

Looking at her hand, encased gently between Will's made it a little better. There was a calmness to him that soothed her, that let her know all was well again in her world. Even if her nails were a mess.

She was a complete hot mess. Such seemed to be driven home when the door opened with a metallic click. Her heart pounded violently in her chest...and then a familiar face slithered in and quickly shut the door. A darker haired white guy in jeans, a dark t-shirt and flushed cheeks.

It was worse than the doctors.

It was Jay Halstead.

Endora rolled her eyes while Will lifted an eyebrow, "Your sergeant said you went home."

"You're here," Jay shot back.

"I'm here for moral support." Will answered, then pointed, "Mom's two rooms down."

Jay ignored that as he walked over to the pair. The hand holding did not escape his attention. "I already saw Ma. By the way, she says she wants you to ask her if pizza is ok for the boys for when you go back to her room."

Knowing he didn't have much time, Jay looked over Endora and skipped the preliminaries. "Do you remember anything about the men?"

"Really?" Will didn't even try to hide his outrage.

"What? Time is precious. The robberies are almost every day now. If we don't get a handle on them soon, more people will be hurt and killed." Jay argued right back.

Sensing that it was up to her to say something, so that he would leave, Endora pointed at him with her free hand. Stiletto nail on her index finger was jagged. "They had on masks. They were probably the same people. What more do you want?"

"Did any of them receive any burns or injuries?"

"How the hell should I know," she all but shrieked.

Will looked at his brother with 'the' look, "Maybe you should go home and read your sergeants interview notes. Because this is not helpful at all."

Jay realized, perhaps, he needed to calm his proverbial shit and ease into the subject. Plus his brother looked like he was ready to throw him out of the room with his bare hands. So he tried again, "I apologize. I really really hate to do this, here and now. If there were any way for me to get this information, believe me, the last thing I would be doing is standing here and harassing you."

Endora could see Will was not impressed and when he let go of her hand, she could all but predict the trouble afoot.

She pushed herself up on her elbows to take charge of the situation.

"Look...once your mom set the house on fire, they scattered. One of them was pretty close to the first flare when it hit the wall. He was screaming a lot too. He must have gotten some of the flare. It went everywhere. I wasn't that close to it and got peppered with it." When she saw how intent he was on what she had to say, she added, "I kicked the one that bit me. I'm not proud of this...but I kicked the heel of my pump into his shoulder pretty hard. It got stuck in there. And I hit another one in the face with a marble statue. It was pretty solid. His buddies had to carry him out."

Jay considered that, he really thought it over.

He then crossed his arms and looked at his brother, "Would either of those require medical attention?"

Finally Will folded his hands on top of his head and shrugged, "It all depends."

Jay rolled his eyes.

So Will went on with, "Of the two, I'd keep an eye out for someone with burns. Burns hurt and are hard to first aid at home. Or go to small pharmacies without cameras to see if someone bought a ton of bandages and Vaseline."


	18. Chapter 18

Will's Mom limped stiffly down the stairs in her fuzzy teal robe with kittens on it.

She had big plans for coffee and Tylenol and it wasn't even dawn.

On action movies and tv, the hero's were never sore or stiff after their heroics and messing themselves up. She'd barely done anything except get a few burns, plus fired a shotgun and she felt like she'd done the Tour de France.

However she was not so sore that she couldn't peek in Will and Jays old rooms to see two boys per bed sound asleep.

Her own husband had been snoring when she finally got out of bed, unable to sleep.

Sometime ago she heard Will get home.

She heard his car, heard him come in, heard him check on the boys then go back downstairs. She'd been fully committed to sleeping, per his request, so she stayed in bed.

Now though, now she knew it wasn't going to happen.

Like, not even a little.

She was however hoping that they'd be up. So upon getting downstairs she looked around. She checked every room she could think of until she hesitated, then peered into the guest room.

In the dark of the guest room, a couple candles on the nightstand allowed her to see the back of Endora's head and the rest of her hidden under a vintage handmade chenille bedspread. Something like that normally wouldn't have taken her so by surprise. She was glad that Endora had come to her house. It'd been so empty since Jay and Will left to start their lives.

But she'd seen Will in the room too.

Will had not been sitting on the end of the bed, or in the big stuffed chair by the window that she read in frequently.

No, she easily made out Will's hand slowly, lazily playing with Endora's hair. Running his fingers through the strands. Drawing circles with his fingers. It was nothing more than simple human touch. Yet there was something about it that stopped her dead. The whispers that came from beneath the bedspread, it made her feel as if she'd walked in on a incredibly private moment meant for only the two of them.

Quickly and as quietly as she could, she backed out of the doorway and to her dark kitchen, mind spinning.

What should have made her very happy, only made her wonder.

How long had that been going on? Why hadn't her son mentioned something? Will had never been good at keeping his thoughts, ideas and feelings to himself. Was it only a physical relationship?

As she put her flashlight on the kitchen table and opened the ice filled cooler on the floor to retrieve her bottled coffee drink, she couldn't help but remember the two of them had made plans for the weekend.

Will's Mom sipped her Starbucks bottled drink and couldn't help but feel uncomfortable. Leave it to her hot mess of a son to find the most broken person she knew. It was why she'd set Endora up with Patrick. Sure Patrick was odd. But Patrick was harmless. Patrick was good practice to get back into the dating scene eventually. Patrick was beyond a safe option.

And her son, she nearly dropped her face in her hands at the thought of Will. Will needed someone that was whole. A mother knew when her child was struggling, in the midst of a hard time. Professionally and personally, she knew Will had been pushed very near the end of his limit. Months ago he'd been talking about moving across the country to start fresh. While she didn't want him to, she understood that it may have been what he needed and that was enough to get her blessing.

In the end, Will had elected to remain in Chicago and his mood had been iffy at best.

In a mood of her own, Mrs Halstead sipped her beverage at the small table in the kitchen and pondered in the dark of the house that she and her husband had made a home.

Eventually, when the sky began to lighten after a few hours, she heard then saw Will approach.

Just as he did when he was a teenager, he walked into the kitchen yawning, rubbing his neck and looking for his car keys. Although he was dressed far better in scrubs and smelled like toothpaste and mouthwash.

"Did you get any sleep?"

Will jumped at the voice in the mostly dark house, then narrowed his eyes in the direction of the kitchen table. "A few hours," he answered, before going over to his mom and kissing her cheek. "How do you feel?"

"Fine," she lied.

Will didn't believe her, "Did you take a pain pill so you could sleep last night?" Even though he was pretty sure he knew the answer.

Mrs Halstead completely avoided that question.

She had many more questions of her own that she wanted to ask, yet, she knew that if she asked he very well may deny. She didn't want to make him lie, or hide things from her more than he did, for what he assumed was her own good she figured. Twisting the cap on the glass bottle as Will went over to the counter where a bowl of fruit sat.

"How long till Endora can clean her stitches? This afternoon maybe?"

"Why," he asked, sensing trickery afoot.

Knowing it was a sin to lie, she spoke, "My friend Sharon's son found Endora charming. He wanted to come see her last night, but you two got back so late. I was just wondering. You know, so she could put some makeup on. Sharon's son is a lawyer you know, and his divorce was just finalized."

Something that was probably an apple fell on the floor and rolled around in the dark.

Just as she suspected.

She heard Will paced around looking for the fruit. His voice was tinged with irritation. It could have been from dropping the last apple, or not.

"Ma she's probably not going to be in the mood. Plus yesterday was the boys last day of summer school. I'm sure she has other plans."

Knowing her son, she could glean from that what she did.

But she wanted more. Needed a confirmation of sorts.

"Other plans? Do you think she's seeing someone and is just too polite to say something?"

Will was quiet a bit longer than she expected.

Finally she heard him bite soundly into the apple. When he spoke it was with a mouthful of food. "I don't know. But something tells me Sharon is not going to be down with Endora being a burlesque dancer. She thought her former daughter in law was less than worthy for being a Bulls cheerleader."

"Hmmmm...that is true," His mother pondered.

Will gave his mother's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "I'll see you when I get off work. Try and stay out of trouble, would you ma?"


	19. Chapter 19

Friday evening:

Will could not even believe it.

He had got stuck at the ED almost four hours past when his shift ended. Not that it was what surprised him. No, it wasn't even that much of a big deal.

Nor was Endora's text to him that she had taken the boys out to the mall with his mother for some retail therapy. Not even her text that she'd drop her off then come down to his apartment with the boys later that night.

Will hadn't expected her to just sit around his apartment with four boys waiting.

Off he went to the mall and with shockingly good luck tracked down the boys, all seated on a bench with several bags with LEGO on them. All three boys were in such deep discussion they did not notice Will approach.

That was not what blew his mind.

When the four young men pointed to a Sephora mere feet away and warned him not to go in there, he wasn't even in the least bit surprised.

Sure, the thought of braving the crowded cosmetics store didn't exactly fill him with glee.

It was when he found his mother and Endora that he just could not even hide his shock and or horror.

Will heard his mother long before he set eyes upon her in the packed shop.

The lights were too bright. The smells were too strong. And there were way too many people, mostly female.

"...I'm not saying that her son is the one that caught on fire. I'm just saying that it's entirely coincidental that he caught himself on fire bbqing and couldn't come to church. Plus, he's been buying Sharon more stuff. I assumed it was from his lawyering. But you saw that Rolex. It was real."

Will stopped pushing his way past a gaggle of teenage girls crowded around a Urban Decay display. Upon hearing that he looked around for the source of his mother's voice.

She was close.

Endora's voice came next, slightly distracted, "And you wanted me to go out with this cat? Who are you going to set me up with next? The unabomber?"

"If you would have told me that you and Will had something going on I wouldn't have meddled." Will heard his mother clap right back, panic seized him. They were close. Possibly a aisle over? There were too many women.

"I told you...we can either talk about my love life or vigilantism. You picked the latter. No backsies. What do you think of this color?"

Will spotted the back of his mother's head one aisle over.

A noncommittal noise came from the woman, "Eh...stick with that red. I liked that one. A pink would just clash with your hair." She then added, "We're going to need to do some recon of Sharon's house. Tomorrow I'll go with Karen. She just got out of the hospital today. I'll drop you and the boys off at Wills and we'll use your SUV. Sharon hasn't seen it and Karen's cast will fit better in it."

That was the part Will could hardly believe.

He was doing his very best to push his way though the masses to put an end to the plan before his mother got herself in trouble, or worse.

Pursing her lips to one side, Endora looked to Mrs Halstead, spotting Will head their way. "How sure are you? Like, on a scale of hand on the Bible at a trial in front of a jury...or calling in a anonymous tip to crime stoppers so this is no longer our problem to looking this dude up on Facebook?"

"Between those last two," she told her younger friend. "I'm not one hundred percent positive. We need to do some surveillance to be sure."

Endora made a face, then added a tube of lipstick to her pile.

After some thought she grabbed a extra tube of her trademark red for just in case.

"Hey Will..." Endora greeted.

Mrs Halstead jumped and glanced over her shoulder as her son approached. "Will! What are you doing here?"

Will didn't even pretend he hadn't overheard them, "Do you want to end up in the hospital again?"

His mother was not impressed.

"Ma, what are you going to do if Sharon's son is one of the...you know who?"

Endora's attention returned to the lipstick one last time.

Not about to take any lip from her son, she turned and put her hands onl her hips. "If I find out it's true and who the others are, I'll tell your brother. But there is no need to concern your brother with information that may not be correct."

Will was so not impressed.

"No mom. No. I cannot begin to express how many ways no."

Offhandedly, as she looked at a shade of nude consideringly, Endora remarked. "We could all go. The boys have friends who live across the street." After she put the tube back she looked at the pair, both of whom stared at her.

Mrs Halstead made a face, "Amber?"

Endora nodded.

"Ugh...she's such a hypochondriac."

A few customers shot dirty looks their way at that statement.

"Ma! Don't say that!"

"What?! She thought she had sickle cell anemia last month! I'm not the one saying she's a hypochondriac, every doctor she's been to has said that!"

More looks came their way.

"Ma!"

Endora made a curious face, "Sickle cell anemia?"

"Right? White people cant get that and Father O'Farrell told her that but she matched her symptoms up online on WebMD to it. But don't worry, she's convinced she has a tapeworm now..." Will's mom sighed, then paused and looked at her son.

Endora too looked at Will.

"No," he immediately snapped.

Will's mom looked at Endora, Endora lifted a eyebrow.

"Go pay for that stuff...I'll get him onboard with the plan."

"I'm standing right here Ma!"

To which Endora gave them a wave and set off for the register. Will's Mom grabbed his arm and tugged him out of the store, using every tool in her arsenal to convince him to join them that weekend.

Being a good son, Will listened but said nothing. At first because he just had nothing to say from sheer disbelief. Then because he didn't want to say anything mean.

Finally he did speak. But that was only because he and his mother had exited Sephora and they got a good look at the boys. Blood was smeared on the shiny mall floor and splattered on a plastic LEGO bag.

Mark with the Mohawk held his head back at an angle obviously pinching a bloody nose while the twin without hair rubbed an egg on his temple that impressed even Will. Hector looked panicked as he pulled his sling back on, "Don't tell Endora! She'll never leave us alone again."

Will could hardly believe it, "I literally just left you guys alone for five minutes..."


	20. Chapter 20

Later Friday night:

"I cannot believe you're actually going to join my mother on her fact finding expedition."

Endora couldn't believe he still couldn't believe it.

From the other side of the couch she eyed him dubiously yet said nothing in response. She did however wiggle her toes from where her barefeet rested on his groin. On and off he'd rubbed her feet while the boys dropped off like flies, one by one, until all four were asleep in sleeping bags on the floor. Episodes marathoned of "COPS" on the television.

Will took the hint and grabbed one recently pedicured foot which he promptly began to rub.

She didn't want to say it.

She didn't want to admit to being lonely.

She couldn't begin to explain the massive gaping hole in her chest that was left as a result of her parents sudden deaths. She couldn't call them anymore. She couldn't email her mother pictures or send postcards to her dad.

She never even got to say goodbye.

Will's mother was overbearing, nosey and downright pushy at times. His mother reminded her of her own mother so much that it sometimes took her breath away.

"Is she blackmailing you?"

Endora laughed, finding herself comfortable in the small, messy living room that was now covered with LEGO pieces, clothing and popcorn. "No your mother is not blackmailing me. She's my for real favorite person here." When Will made a face she quietly added, "It's nice to have a mom in my life again."

He paused a second upon hearing the rawness in her voice.

Something needed to be said but he wasn't sure what approach to take. His psych rotation had not been a favorite. "Lucky for you, my mother has more than enough smothering to spread out."

"You don't have to come," she told him. Wanting, no needing, a change in subject. The baggage that he lacked in her past was so refreshing. She could just be with Will. "You can bail. I'll tell your mom you got called into work."

"That's not going to happen," was his immediate response. An observation followed, "I haven't seen a foot this banged up since Cirque du Soleil was in town."

Endora peered down at her foot. A little too sore from the other day for any real sudden movements. "I've been dancing since I was two...do you think your mother may be on to something? That this guy could be one of the blackout burgalers?"

Will began to rub a spot on the underside of her foot that was always tender. "Knowing my mother? Yes. She'll probably find a way to stumble into them mid-meeting planning out their next burglary."

He was deadpan serious.

"And since this is my mother..." he went on, "...they'll probably be wanted by Interpol too, or something along those lines. Mark my words, she'll end up on Oprah again before summers over."

Endora laughed just as someone knocked on the apartment door.

She continued to laugh at the thought while Will peeked at his watch, then rolled off the couch, as the knocking was hurried and did not stop.

It was almost midnight. A little late for a social call.

Bypassing the pile of snoring boys, Will wound around the living room area to the door with small alcove entrance way. After a peek through the peephole he sighed loudly.

"It's my brother."

A noise that could have meant anything came from the couch.

Through the door came Jay's voice, "Will! Open the door. It's me."

For a second Will considered not opening the door. But, in the end, he slid the locks and let his brother in his apartment.

While it wasn't his brother's first visit to his apartment, his brother was not a frequent visitor. Concern etched onto Will's face. "Is everything ok?"

"Is your girlfriend here?"

Will noticed Jay had a laptop under his arm.

Backing up, he motioned for his brother to come in, "Yeah. Keep your voice down. The boys are sleeping."

Will locked his door up again.

When he turned, his brother had already gone into the apartment and got Endora up off the couch and into his small kitchen. Which was where Will headed.

Before Jay arrived Endora had been relaxed, albeit a little over dressed in a floor length violet silk robe over a pair of black silky sleeping shorts and a matching cami. Her purple slippers had feathers and rhinestones on them. When Will stepped into the small space he noticed she had belted her robe and stood beside Jay with her arms crossed. She looked tense and wasn't smiling anymore.

Jay's laptop was on the counter by the sink and he was in the process of pulling something up.

Will managed to catch the tail end of it.

"...through old robbery tapes and I found these from last year and the year before. So obviously they're masked and some of the footage is a little grainy. But, could you watch and just observe them? Tell me if their movements are in any way familiar?"

After a sigh, Endora answered, "I'll look." She didn't sound enthusiastic or convinced.

Once Jay had pulled up the videos he stepped to the side to allow Endora to look. Will sided right up next to her to see. Not that Will saw anything that stood out particularly. As Endora watched Will asked, "Have you shown this to Ma yet?"

Jay nodded that he had indeed.

For a while Endora watched every video without much emotion. She seemed almost bored.

Jay began to get nervous, his mother hadn't recognized anyone. Granted his mother had not been around them very long. Endora had been and Jay was hoping. That hope began to die up until he saw Endora begin to twirl a strand of her black cherry hair between two claw like nails, narrow her eyes and tilt her head ever so slightly.

Jay looked to the screen to see which recorded footage she was on.

When she asked if she could watch that particular footage again, he nearly jumped for joy.

Endora rewatched it several more times before she tapped the screen with her nail.

It was a video with three men breaking into and robbing a jewelry store. "Him. The one who walks around like he's a boxer. He moves like one of the guys from Marge's house. I avoided him as best as I could, I didn't want him to hit me. I was afraid he'd break my nose or jaw."

Even on the grainy footage Will could see how beefy the man was and deep down found himself beyond grateful that Endora was only very bruised from her encounter.

He also made a mental note to keep closer tabs on his mother and her snooping.


	21. Chapter 21

Will woke up earlier than even he expected that Saturday morning.

It was still dark in his room.

It was exceptionally hot, too hot. Hot enough he suspected that the power was out since his bedroom was usually kept at a temperature that penguins found comfortable.

What woke him up was the tossing and turning that came from beside him in his bed.

A pile of bedsheets were pushed onto him.

Then came a voice, "Will...are you up?"

Sleepily he made a noise of confirmation into the darkness of the room.

A tortured sigh came from her side of the bed. "I can't get comfortable. Everything hurts or feels too tight. And I think I'm having a hot flash."

There was some movement, followed by the sound of his eighth floor window opening.

A warm beeeze wafted in that was just slightly cooler than inside.

"This whole city is having a hot flash," he told her but a moment or so later strong hands slid underneath her damp cami to rub her back. At first it hurt. She was so uncomfortable it felt like her muscles were glass.

But then...then something seemed to give way and even though she was nowhere near comfortable being one big collection of bruises, the bruises felt different, more pliable perhaps. Her body was no longer painfully stiff. Her muscles began to burn but at least it allowed her to relax.

Beneath his hands, Will could feel how tight her muscles were and took pity on Endora. Before he realized it, he'd propped himself up on his elbow and put considerable effort into her back, then her shoulders, followed by her arms and neck.

It wasn't long before he found himself pressed against the back of her, rubbing her hands, each finger and hand with complete dedication to his task.

"You're pretty good at that...you missed your calling as a masseur. If you keep this up I'll have to cut back on my time with Big Jon."

Will stilled for a moment and then rested his chin on her arm, "And whom is Big Jon?"

"My personal masseur. You'd like him. He's moody and temperamental too."

Will sank his teeth into her neck just bordering on playful.

She wiggled against him, stifling a laugh to avoid waking the boys.

When Will's mouth traveled up her neck to her ear, she gasped into the pillow adding for good measure. "Big Jon would like you back. His boyfriend is a ginger too...although his boyfriend looks like the Brawny paper towel guy. Complete with knit beanie and flannel shirt."

Upon squirming back, she could feel him pressed against her along with the rest of him.

"At what point during the night did you take off your pants?"

His breath steamed on her neck, "It's hot."

Even though she swore the room was close the three digits in temperature, Endora felt her cheeks flush. She felt her heart kick up and heard blood roar in her ears. She felt like a teenager again. Even though she was a adult, Will made her feel so wild and reckless, it should have been illegal. When his hand slid up under her camisole her hand slid back to feel him.

It was not long before the two of them pulled and pushed her silky sleeping shorts down in a combined team effort.

During that time, she managed to gasp out, "If this is all we do...is this even a relationship? Can we even say we're seeing each other?"

Will had just ripped open a foil packet containing a prophylactic.

After kissing her shoulder most soundly, he nipped at her ear. "Absolutely. And, we do other things than this. We go places. We eat food. We're participating in vigilante snooping. Don't forget about those boys...we have exposed them to all sorts of inappropriate things." With minimal effort he managed to suit up as she sank her fingers up into his hair and roughly pulled him down to her. "One could even say...we're participating in a couple-esqe activity Sunday afternoon. Couples that attempt to locate dangerous criminals together, stay together."

Still gripping him roughly by the hair, she breathed deeply, considering his words.

"And that means it's just us? Just you and me."

Even with his head trapped, Will managed to nudge his knee between hers and pop her legs open with less than minimal effort. All her attention was focused on his face in the dark of his room.

"Let me assure you..." he breathed, sensing there was an need to her words that he attributed to the previous relationship she'd mentioned, full of infidelity and toxicity. Yet he knew that words would only go so far. He intended to be proactive in convincing her that she was the only object of his affections. "...thinking up new and inventive ways to keep up with you and your needs, requires absolutely all of my attention. You are quite the handful."

"Really? Promise?" She sounded genuinely touched.

"I ruined your birthday date so you'd spend it with me, didn't I? If that's not a sign I don't know what is. I mean really Endora. I had a car towed out of my own pocket. That's devotion."

Her grip on his hair loosened, "That's true...I cost you a lot of money that night."

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Endora woke up alone in a pile of blankets, sweaty and hearing voices.

"Dude...I shit you not...you have to toss all that food out. Even the waffles. We're gonna have to venture out for breakfast. And if you know what's good for you you'll go out for coffee for Endora...like now. You know what she's like in the morning without coffee."

Endora narrowed her eyes, that sounded like Hector.

Wills voice drifted through the door, "Which one of you knows what she gets at Starbucks?"

Silence.

Endora knew for a fact that they all knew what she liked. Which could only mean they were shaking him down.

Not that Will was having any of it.

"I better have a volunteer or I'm taking us all out to lunch and dinner at vegetarian restaurants."

A smile crept over her lips at that, he was adapting quite well.


	22. Chapter 22

Sunday afternoon:

Amber's house was the picture of white Pickett fence perfection. Will half expected to see a Stepford wife wave from the front picture window overlooking a lawn as green as a field in Ireland.

"Amber's husband is a investment banker," Endora told him after seeing the look on his face. After which she hopped out of her SUV to follow the boys, all of whom were excited at the prospect of some new toy Amber's boys had informed them of.

On her way around the front of her vehicle, she caught Will's eye and sent a wink his way.

A plan had been formulated over most of Saturday.

Pretending to look for something around the drivers seat and console, Will asked the empty vehicle, "Are you ok back there? Don't forget to drink the water bottles we gave you and text us if you get too hot. Ok Ma?"

From the back cargo area came, "I know, I know. Go."

It took everything Will had to not roll his eyes.

He then slid from the drivers seat after turning off Endora's ride with her iPhone in hand. As per their plan, he called out for Endora up by the front door at that point.

She and a blonde woman in active wear were discussing a potted plant by the door.

The boys had gone already.

Both women glanced his way. The blonde was suspicious but could have been any suburban mom in the greater Chicago area. Endora on the other hand stuck out like a sore thumb with her hair, her nails, those patent leather pumps with a black dress that was straight out of the forties but somehow looked sinful.

"You forgot your phone," he called out, as per the plan.

It was a simple plan. All good plans were.

As expected, Amber was not too moved by Will in general. Not until she saw his hospital softball shirt did she perk up.

Endora took her phone and introduced Will to Amber.

"Do you work at the hospital," Amber asked, holding his hand a bit longer than was polite.

Feigning confusion, Endora pointed at his shirt. "Yes he does. He's a doctor in the emergency department."

"Really?" Amber's interest was blatantly obvious. "Would that be the hospital that had the case of the parasite in the emergency department?"

Modestly Will nodded, "Unfortunately yes. How'd you find out..."

Amber quickly spoke up and motioned for them to come inside, "It was on the news. Please, come in, have some lemonade. Endora you must tell me how you met Doctor Will. You know...I have a tapeworm."

XXXXXIIIIIXXXXX Five hours later:

"I'm hungry. And I'm thirsty." Snoopy announced from beside the black SUV.

His twin spoke up too, "Yeah...that lemonade wasn't lemonade. Putting lemon slices in water doesn't make it lemonade. Sugar. You need to put sugar in it."

Endora motioned for them to get in, "You two get more than enough sugar at home. Let's go. I need a little something from Starbucks. We'll all sugar up there."

Eye rolling came from both boys.

Yet when the three of them opened their doors on the passenger side, while doors on the drivers side opened too, a smell drifted. It was a particular smell. A rather pungent smell. Endora's hand covered her mouth. Accusations flew. Her eyes narrowed at Jun, "Did you find a dead animal and put it in this car again?"

Snoopy narrowed his eyes suspiciously at his twin while also holding a hand over his nose.

Jun shook his head and gestured wildly, "I only did that once! And no! And it was a dead snake! I could have used it in the science fair!"

Will quickly leaned in and turned the SUV on so he could lower all four windows.

"I swear! I didn't put any dead animals in here! For realsies!"

Some more protests were made, accusations were launched, in the end all four boys climbed in mutinously and by the time the vehicle backed out of the driveway, four little heads hung from the back windows.

Will and Endora shot nervous looks to one another.

As quickly as possible, Will headed towards the first place he could find, which turned out to be a ice cream shop three miles from Amber's house. Done up in a old fashion retro sort of way.

It was both the longest and quickest drive in Chicago that day.

The vehicle pulled into the spot and all four boys plus Endora piled out before it was turned off.

Endora grabbed Jun by his shirt and handed him her purse, "Get whatever you boys want. Get me a coffee milkshake and Will a strawberry one."

No arguments were made, all four of them ran across the parking lot for the air conditioned ice cream shop.

Only when they were inside did Endora look at Will and voice her fears, "Your mom couldn't die and decompose in that short time? Could she?"

Will shook his head with certainty that it was impossible. Yet he had no earthly idea what the smell could be. And with Endora's keys in hand they both hurried around the vehicle, unlocked the back cargo area door and opened it, that horrific smell much stronger in the back.

Will yanked the Blackhawks throw from the bumps that should have been his mom, the cooler and her bag of equipment.

Not only was all of that there, but so was his brother Jay and various bags of trash.

Both Will and Endora were silent in shock.

Mrs Halstead spoke up calmly, "I know what you're both thinking. But...we had a perfect opportunity with the trash can on the curb and I had to call your brother. We had to maintain the evidentiary chain of custody."

Will remained silent. Endora covered her mouth with her hands.

Jay spoke up, "If you give me the keys, I'll have this vehicle back to you in under an hour. Tops."

Endora looked to Will, hands still covering her mouth, eyes wide at the sudden turn in events, at possible evidence in her cargo area. None of which was in any of the promotional brochures at the Cadillac dealer for her SUV. The salesman's never told her just how many people or bags of trash could fit in her vehicle.

"You could take the boys putt putt golfing. It's just across the street," Mrs Halstead suggested.

Jay perked up at mention of miniature golf, "Yeah. Putt putt, Will why don't you take everyone to pirate-land? On me. When Ma and I are done we'll drop off this car in the putt putt parking."

Mention of pirate themed recreation settled somewhat with Will. He placed a hand on Endora's shoulder and spoke calmly to her alone. "Putt putt sounds good?"

Wordlessly she nodded.

"Why don't you go sit inside in the fresh clean air conditioning? I'll be right in."

Hands still over her nose, Endora turned and headed into the ice cream parlor mentally praying that the smell would not linger.


	23. Chapter 23

Later that night:

Will had been called in just before ten that night. A big pool party had ended quickly after a large brawl erupted when a group of party crasher's had shown up. At the same time a restaurant had a grease fire in the kitchen that spread into the dining room leading to mass panic. And to top all of that off, a wedding reception had ended in a disasterous case of mass food poisoning.

Several members of the ED had been called in to help with the sudden influx of patients in the crowded department.

Will's eighth patient that night was his third from the pool party.

April, who had also been called in from a relaxing night out at her favorite yoga studio, joined Will in the exam room with a cool collected mask on her face. She maintained absolute professionalism at the sight of a frequent flier in the emergency department.

"Ryan...how are you doing tonight?" Will inquired, as he pulled on a pair of gloves.

April mirrored him at the sight of the man covered in blood. The smell of alcohol strong, liquor not beer. And yes, the two of them were experts.

Incoherently Ryan groaned.

Ryan held a towel to his broken nose. His bloody shirt was just barely hanging on to one shoulder. The shoulder that had the white shirts remaining sleeve intact was dislocated.

Both April and Will took notes of the most serious injuries.

They spoke nonverbally, with gestures and nods as they did whenever the ED was crazy busy. Their professional connection was a thing of beauty. As Will very carefully pulled the bar towel away to get a look at the spectacularly broken nose. Which was quite possibly the worse he'd ever seen in his entire career, April began to cut away what remained of Ryan's shirt.

April made quick work of the shirt and then paused.

April remembered something Maggie had mentioned a couple days ago.

A chill swept over April, she knew that what she was looking at was important.

Quickly catching Will's attention from behind the patient who was in a considerable amount of pain, so much so that he was practically incoherent. Using that as an excuse to not tip off the patient, April gestured wildly for Will to come look even though she spoke with utter calmness. "Doctor Halstead, what about pain management?"

A noise of total agreement came from the badly maimed patient. Half his face was swollen badly from the broken nose, so much so that his left eye was swollen completely shut.

Will took three steps to get a look at what April gestured at with great enthusiasm.

From the center of the mans back to his neck were five deep scabbed up nail marks that were very familiar to Will. Someone had scratched the man up good.

But it was not just that which had alarmed April.

A stab wound on the back of the back of the mans left shoulder from something blunt caught Will's trained eye. A significant amount of damage had been done. The hole was the size of a quarter. Swelling told Will the depth was four inches. Bruising was dark and looked incredibly painful.

The two shared a look, suspecting that they had a suspected wanted man in their hospital.

Will jerked his head to the door, giving April the all clear to go tell Maggie who could alert hospital security. Strict policy was in place for that exact scenario and April knew how to set off that particular alarm.

As she slipped out of the room, Will began to ask about medication allergies absolutely convinced that one of Endora's pumps had been buried in the patients back. He was also convinced she'd been the one to scratch him up with those stiletto nails.

He was going to need to speak with her in the very near future.

XXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXXIXX

It was Monday night when Will finally left the hospital with a single task in mind. And it was a few hours later before he tracked down Endora.

"What the hell are you doing back here dude? It's just rehearsals tonight." Snoopy helpfully pointed out at the sight of a approaching Will. Yet he didn't give Will his attention for long. His eyes went back to his cards as his twin who had all his hair placed his cards down and sighed, "I fold."

Will almost asked if they were playing poker. But then he decided he really didn't want to know the answer to that question.

After all, all four boys were backstage at the theater in the break room.

Remanents of dinner was scattered around the table. A wicker basket was on the floor.

A woman wearing what looked like a stocking flesh colored bodysuit with nothing but strategically placed sequins over her most private places was drinking a bottle of water, peering over Hectors shoulder.

Will could hardly believe it.

What he couldn't believe was when his mother told him that Endora had not only gone to work, but she brought the boys. So after he checked up on his mom and made her promise to take a pain pill so she would sleep, he headed for the theater.

All four of the boys didn't seem to notice, or care, that they were backstage at a practice session for a burlesque show that according to everyone he passed, was ongoing.

"Where's Endora?"

Four heads craned to look up at Will and then pointed.

"She should be getting ready for a break about now," smiled the knockout blonde in the sequins and nylon. She then put a cap back on her bottled water and motioned for him to follow her, "I'll take you to see her." With a glance back at the boys she waggled a white pearly nail with glitter and smaller pearls on it, "You boys stay in here."

All four faces grimmaced.

Mark spoke up, "Like anyone wants to see a half dressed woman. Gross."

All those faces looked as if the thought would make them ill.

Will figured their opinions would change in a few years.

If it had been a few weeks ago he would have appreciated the looks the blonde was sending his way. She curled up against him, looping her hand in the crook of his elbow as she led him through a flurry of backstage activity. But it was not a few weeks ago and Will may have been able to appreciate the attractive dancer, but he was a monogamous creature, always had been.

He thanked her when she deposited him not far from the big heavy curtain where other dancers in active wear and various costumes watched and or waited.

Endora's husky voice could be heard talking to several other dancers who obviously were new or filling a different role than they were used to.

She was patient as she went over the routine down to the second for them.

Dressed down in what appeared to be tiny black sequined shorts with black garters and tights, those pumps she was so fond of and a billowy black shirt with sequined tiger head. Her blood red bra straps were visible. A sequined black top hat completed the ensemble.

Will watched them practice for what felt like hours but was only ten, maybe fifteen minutes, before It became clear that Endora was loosing steam. A man that Will assumed was the shows director told Endora to go take a break, and then called for who he assumed were other dancers.

He could tell she was tired not only because she didn't argue, but from the way her shoulders sagged and how she walked slowly towards the back stage area.

Yet when she saw him, her heavily made up face broke out in a smile. "Hey you. What are you doing here?"

She was tall as him in those heels. Her artfully applied makeup hid bruises even from his expert eye.

His first words escaped before he could stop them, "You looked amazing."

Will thought he saw her blush under her makeup, but he couldn't be sure.

"How do you feel? I can't believe you're up and doing this."

She coyly pointed to the helpful blonde, "I had a assistant. She did a lot of my dancing and we came up with some stuff while I'm otherwise impaired." Endora then popped off her top hat and shook out her hair with her fingers. Oblivious to the frenzy of activity all around them. "I'll just baby wipe the makeup off and check with WebMD to see when I. can shower and remove my own stitches."

Will gave her a heated look at mention of THAT website.

Glad he'd changed out of his scrubs into jeans and a t-shirt, he could feel things stirring beneath the denim and was quite relieved that the denim hid it. Scrubs were made of cotton and concealed very little.

"Why don't you just put a knife through my heart?"

She smirked but wasn't fooled. "What are doing here? I thought you were going home?"

He looked around a bit nervously.

"Did you come all the way down here to break up with me? You could have just texted me."

He gave her a scathing look, "No!"

Will's sudden and strong reaction drew stares from all around. So in a calmer tone he added, "I came to talk to you about someone I saw at work today."

One of her eyebrows rose questioningly.

"Privately," he added.


	24. Chapter 24

Will's gaze went directly to the mirrored makeup vanity in Endora's dressing room as she closed the door behind the two of them. At the mere thought of what had happened in the dressing room the last time he was there, and on that desk covered with makeup and hair paraphernalia, he felt a flush of heat. In the mirror he saw his cheeks and neck had gone red.

"As adorable as it is seeing your dirty thoughts pop up...I'm a little too sore from this weekend for an encore performance in here," she teased.

A little bit too pleased with herself at the teasing and expression that followed from him, she tossed her top hat onto the hat stand by her makeup box.

"How sore? Are you in any pain or discomfort?"

Endore frowned at him and plopped down on her couch with great care, as her side was a lot more sore than she wanted him to know. "Is this Will asking? Or is it Doctor Will asking?"

As she fidgeted in an attempt to get comfortable, Will took a look around the entirety of the dressing room.

"Well I am a doctor so I'm going to say true, in response to your question." Something he'd heard Hector say that weekend. He easily picked up on her discomfort when he took a seat on the couch. His hand rested on her knee. "I'll ask you about how you're feeling in a few minutes. So save that panicked expression for later. I actually came here because I am almost positive I saw the guy you stabbed with your shoe in the ED."

Endora's mouth dropped in shock.

"I actually recognized him from around the neighborhood. Which had me thinking all day, wondering if he recognized you at all? From your encounter with him? You know, when you stabbed him with your shoe."

Momentarily forgetting about her bruised ribs and his question, she sat up and demanded, "Did you call the cops to turn him in?!"

Possessing the patience of a saint for the first time in his life, Will slowly nodded and spoke with the utmost calmness. Where it came from was a mystery to him. "Of course, he had a warrant for unpaid parking tickets. So he was arrested on that for the moment. I doubt the cops will be able to hold him long and they don't seem to have the evidence to arrest him at the moment. Especially since we haven't seen any press conferences from city hall. You know the mayor is going to be all over this when they finally get arrested."

Endora looked upwards for divine help.

"Do you remember Ryan? From the neighborhood?"

She looked Will's way, "Ryan? The psycho? Who used beat us all up and break into houses after school?"

Will frowned, "You remember Ryan from high school but not me?"

"You never broke my arm," she shot back.

"That's true," he conceded. Then he asked, genuinely interested, eyes focused on her, "Did he recognize you? That afternoon in Marge's house?"

Endora thought about it. She gave it considerable effort.

Thinking back to that afternoon was a blur. Everything that happened seemed to have melted together.

Finally, shaking her head, she conceded, "I don't think so...he never gave any indication that he did."

When she finally met his gaze she added, "I look very different now than I did back in high school."

Will had to admit that was true.

"We're going to have to be careful until he gets arrested. My brother and the cops are keeping a close eye on him. But his family still lives in the neighborhood and he hides out a lot with them. He's probably going to remember you now."

Silently she nodded in agreement.

"Can you dye your hair a different color?"

Endora shook her head, "No, it has to stay this color. All the ads are of me with this color. I can throw on a hat and stay inside as much as possible."

"Why don't you come stay with me again tonight? We can talk more...come up with a plan."

Endora nodded in agreement to that, then asked, "What about your mom?"

He gave her 'the' look before rolling his eyes and running his fingers through his hair. "She absolutely insists they never saw her and I need to quit worrying."

Endora did not give him a convinced look.

"I know," he sighed, "Which is why Jay is crashing over at her house for the time being."

"That would explain the flurry of phone calls I got from her during rehearsal."

"To be honest," Will hesitated, "A good number of those were from me. I was having a hard time tracking you down. I wanted to warn you about Ryan."

A hand went to her chest in a touched gesture.

Little did she know how sincere it was, and when she did, she placed her hand over his on her knee and squeezed.

XXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXXIXXX

Endora spent a significant part of the night listening to the saga about the intestinal parasite. Updated completely with pictures and a detailed description of the life and adventures of intestinal parasites in general. While Endora could have done without it. All four of the boys were thrilled and held Will in a new respect, right up there with the ice cream man and the neighborhood teenager who skateboarded with his dog.

After promises were made to take the boys to the hospital to meet Bob the X-ray tech so he could show them his collection of gnarly rays, Will turned off the lights in his living room and went in the general direction of his bedroom.

The small apartment had one bathroom situated between the living room kitchen area and his bedroom. A light came out from under the door of that bathroom.

Will paused outside of it, "Endora?"

She pushed the door open with her foot.

A cloud of steam escaped.

Will slid in and closed the door with his hip.

A strangled noise came from him at the sight of her and a head full of curlers. The towel wrapped around her that just barely covered everything was missed out on entirely. Will could not look away from those curlers.

Endora frowned at him in the mirror, "Hush you. I need to look good for tomorrow. I need to get myself dismissed from jury summons." Her attention then returned to dabbing makeup off the stitches on the side of her nose. "My resting bitch hair works every time. Paired with my black power dress and pumps."

"Court room thirteen? Ten o'clock?"

Endora narrowed her eyes at him in the mirror and remained still, "Yeah."

"I've been summoned too."

She would have laughed if the stitches in her face getting cleaned were not so sensitive. "Bet I can get thrown out of jury selections before you."

Will did laugh, "Please...I'm always first to be thrown off." He then motioned for her to turn around and took the baby wipe from her, still alarmed at all those rollers. Freckles began to appear on her nose as more stage makeup came off. "We could always make a friendly wager."

"I'm not interested in taking your money."

His grin grew considerably. "Some things are far more interesting than money."

One of her eyebrows rose to expressive new heights.

"Loser has to take the winner at lunch."

Will reached for another baby wipe.

"You mean take the winner to lunch?"

"Nope," he shook his head, then rubbed the fresh wipe over the bridge of her nose to expose bruised skin. "Lunch is a given. The first person thrown off the jury deserves something special."

Freckles and a purplish bruised nose began to appear as if by magic.

"What kind of something special? Are we basing this on time it takes to get thrown off the jury? Or most creative way?"

Will dabbed at the darkening bruise until it lightened up on her cheek where a splattering of delicate freckles resided. "Both," was his answer. "Close your eyes. This may take a while to get all this eye makeup off. If I were you, I'd use your time wisely to think up a new and inventive way to congratulate me tomorrow."

She snorted, closing her eyes, "You haven't seen my ensemble for tomorrow. I'll have you on your knees and conceding victory before we get inside the courthouse."


	25. Chapter 25

Will watched Endora stroll on up the sidewalk drawing looks from all around. Men, women and even children. Some stared at her in awe, others looked at her outfit and made mental notes for later, others looked in attraction while a few jealous peeks escaped.

Will had never been so uncomfortable or secretly proud of himself in his life.

When Endora came to a stop in front of him with a old vintage umbrella protecting her from the sun. He simply could not help himself, "You are a horrible horrible creature."

Endora smiled at him with perfect matte blood red lips.

She twirled the umbrella between her fingers. "Do you concede victory?"

The summer sun was already unbearably hot. Even in his khaki boat shorts and polo shirt, Will was hotter than hell and sweating like a farm animal.

He could not remember the last time Chicago was so hot.

"Never," he declared.

Then with a wave of his hands before they went in his pockets, he gestured for her to lead the way.

Tightly encased in a black pencil skirt and matching silk blouse with red belt, Endora walked up the marble steps knowing that he'd watch every step. So she made sure to put a little extra sway in her hips. With every step her pumps clicked loudly on the hard surface.

When she came to the top step a man in a power suit, most likely a lawyer, broke away from his comrades to open the courthouse door for her. Endora rewarded him with a smile that made the man blush a shade of red from his neck to his bald head.

Will rolled his eyes and followed her inside the old massive courthouse.

He watched her pull in the umbrella and draw eyes from all around.

Upon looking for the correct way to go, he spotted it and pointed to a metal detector leading to the left wing of the courthouse. After taking a step closer and telling her where they needed to go, he pressed his mouth to her ear, nose brushing against her perfectly coiffed hair. "I'm going to treat you so much at lunch, you'll require bed rest for the rest of the afternoon."

Unbothered by his statement, she hung her umbrella on her wrist. "Don't be a tease. Ladies don't appreciate that sort of thing."

"And I'll make you watch," he threw in for good measure.

She gave him an appreciative sideways smile.

The two of them then headed towards the signs for jury selection that were put out for that day, going through metal detectors along the way.

For the first time in a while, Will wasn't absolutely irate about getting a jury summons. It was also one of the few times he hadn't brought a pillow to nap with, that usually worked at getting his tossed first. If not, he'd remark that he was a doctor and the defendant looked familiar to him. That one never failed him.

As they meandered down the hall to where the printer paper signs indicted, Will inquired, "So what did you do with the boys today? Dare I ask?"

A remark about pinning a hundred dollar bill to each of their shirts and wishing them the best of luck was on the tip of her tongue. However, as Endora got a good look at the plastic chairs in the waiting area and the people filling them, she decided to go with the truth. "It was either street hockey day camp or a laser tag contest. Laser tag seemed to be the safer option. Plus they talked your dad into going."

Will's eyes widened at mention of his father.

"So I dropped them, your father and three of his VFW buddies off with a cooler full of drinks and a cooler full of food." Endora told him, finally picking a bright orange chair to sit in.

Will did not look reassured, "The VFW buddies...did one have a eyepatch and another walk with a limp?"

Unconcerned she nodded and adjusted her handbag and umbrella.

Will decided to not mention that his father's VFW buddies were members of his SEAL team from Vietnam. It was best not to worry Endora with those little details. He plopped down beside her as she added, "One of them even told me how to get the most out of my liquid eye liner. I can't believe you've never introduced me to those men."

Will couldn't believe it either.

On the tip of his tongue was a fiery remark along those lines.

But something else got his attention. Someone actually. Trouble to be specific.

"William Patrick Halstead!" Shouted an angry voice from incredibly nearby.

Fortunately for Will he had seen the man, another frequent flyer in the ED and older brother of Ryan Donovan, an equal terror to his childhood memories and the neighborhood in general. Last Will knew Mike Donovan was suspected in a series of bank robberies, although nothing had ever been proven.

Will was standing up on his feet with the burly, fortyish, bald tattooed man stormed over.

Heads turned and people didn't even pretend to be discreet about looking.

Mike shoved Will hard enough in the chest to nearly knock him down into the chair. "You got my brother arrested! I never took you for a snitch!"

Endora stood up but Will had already recovered and was chest to chest, toe to toe, nose to nose with the man. "Your idiot brother got hisself thrown in jail!"

"Are you calling my brother a liar?"

Endora looked desperately around the hallway outside the big courtroom for a cop or security. She didn't want to leave Will alone with the mountain of a man. And no one else seemed interested in going for help.

"I'm calling your brother a idiot. Who goes to the hospital with injuries the entire city police force is looking for, and injuries that are tied to a reward that is on the news every night?" Will snapped right back, "It could have been any of his buddies looking for a reward who called that tip in! It could have been you...that neck tattoo looks new and more expensive than your other ones."

Mike swung at Will. Endora screamed. Will blocked the beefy fist with his wrist. While the men were both around six feet Will was slimmer, Mike was bigger but none of his bulk was in shape.

Again Mike swung at Will, someone shouted for sercurity and Will managed to just avoid the fist coming at his face. In return, he delivered a hard punch of his own to Mike's cheek, making the mans head snap back.

Endora screamed some more for help, people quickly moved out of their seats as Mike grabbed Will by the shirt and the two scuffled their way into chairs, knocking them askew. After which Endora began to smack Mike with her umbrella. Seeing the men fight filled her with a terror she hadn't felt in a long time. It seized her gut and twisted. No matter how much or how loud she screamed she could barely hear herself.

Finally, as sounds of security drew near, she got a clear shot of Mikes face. As he'd just thrown Will into a row of chairs, sending him onto the cold hard ground.

Swinging her umbrella like a bat, it connected with Mikes face once, twice and then a third time.

By the third time he ripped it away, as the broken pieces had begun to cut up his face.

In that time Endora had swung her handbag hard enough to gouge a chunk from Mikes chubby cheek.

When two police officers made it over, Endora still battered at Mike with her handbag as the man made a sincere effort to do her harm. He had a handful of her dress in one hand and a fist of his other. Had Will not joined into the fray, Ryan would have managed to land a sound blow to the well dressed woman. It was the very definition of a melee. Usually the courthouse saw one or two a week. It was a very high tension building. But never had there been one with a woman wearing Chanel.

A noble attempt was made on part of the young officers to separate the two men.

Hands grabbed, arms jerked, legs entwined, bodies shoved until the mess of people moved as one towards the hard polished floor.

Endora managed to get in one final solid whack with her handbag before placing her arm out to break her fall. With the men above her and the floor beneath her, Endora's arm absorbed the impact of her body plus more. Although at that last pivotal second, her elbow didn't twist, her arm straightened and then something broke unable to stand up to the forces of physics.


	26. Chapter 26

Mrs Halstead gasped at the sight of Endora's left arm in a sling that night.

Wearing her big fluffy robe with slippers, she ushered her friend and son into her well lit kitchen. Adjusting her big framed glasses, she could not believe her eyes, "Oh my gosh Endora. You didn't tell me you got hurt."

Will shut and locked the kitchen door behind them.

Hours ago, Endora had called from the police station to tell Mrs a Halstead briefly what happened, and to ask if the boys could stay over, and then where to go find the boys and Mr Halstead.

Mrs Halstead ushered her neighbor to a chair at her kitchen table, filled up the kettle and put it on the stove, then she narrowed her eyes at her son. "What did you do?"

A second later Jay knocked on the locked kitchen door.

Will made no move to unlock the door.

Will did however defend himself, "I didn't do anything. I was the one who was attacked."

Jay continued to knock.

Wills mother gestured pointedly at Endora.

Not even attempting to put on a brave face, she tried to get comfortable in the kitchen chair as she hissed, "Broken collarbone."

"Oh my God! Will! How will she dance like that?"

The knocking continued on the back door.

Will stared at his mother, "Somehow I don't think that's the highest in our stack of priorities right now."

"She has mouths to feed!"

Almost apathetic in her distracted state, Endora fidgeted with her sling. "Yeah...I have mouths to feed."

The knocking went on and was accompanied by shouting.

Will wasn't sure who to start with, so he ignored his brother and began with his mother, "She's got a wealth manager Ma, she's fine." Will then pointed at Endora for not the first time, "If you dont stop fussing with that sling...so help me, I'll give you something for the pain."

Endora stilled but glared daggers at him.

Mrs Halstead placed a hand on the back of Endora's chair, "Let your brother in."

"No. He can stay out there to think about what he did and what he failed to do," Will declared.

Said knocking did not stop.

Will's mother began to ask. Will just told her in a state of righteous outrage. "Two words Ma. Ryan Donovan."

Distaste instantly covered her usually warm features.

Outraging on as Endora discreetly attempted to adjust her sling, Will went on, gesturing at the kitchen door. "Jay knew he would be at the courthouse too! And he didn't warn us!"

Will's mother quickly went around the table to the door to get more info from her other son. Will took that opportunity to go over to where Endora sat. He placed a hand on her other shoulder and stared down at her till she looked up to meet his gaze. "There is nothing wrong with taking a painkiller for a broken collarbone. You don't have anything to prove to me. And you'll be staying here tonight. You don't need to worry about being out of it if the boys need something."

Endora narrowed her eyes dangerously at him, "I'll think about it."

Yet her dirtiest look was saved for Jay, when he came in the cozy kitchen with black and white tile floors. A clock of a cat with a swinging tail hung on the wall. A rack of different salt and pepper shakers hung over the oven and a fridgerator covered with pictures made it feel homey.

"Will's lying," Jay immediately declared upon finally gaining entry into his childhood home.

Their mother crossed her arms and looked between her sons. "Will is wrong? You did not know Ryan Donovan would be at the courthouse today?"

Jay hesitated, "Well no, I knew that."

When Jay saw the shock on his mother's face, he quickly amended, "But usually he's out of there in minutes. He's never stayed around after going to court. It is pure luck that he saw Will. And a complete accident what happened to Endora. That courthouse is huge! Him running into Will was a total fluke."

At mention of Endora, Mrs Halstead pointed at her, "Her collarbone is broken! How is she supposed to work with that? She can't just have nearly naked men dancers carry her around on a board like Cleopatra!"

A thoughtful look came over Endora's face.

"What does she mean nearly naked," Will wanted to know.

"Don't get fussy," Endora muttered, "They wear g-strings."

That knowledge was not exactly a comfort to Will.

"How was I supposed to know he was going to attack Will? You can't blame me for Ryan's bad behavior. And on the plus side, he's in jail now. With his priors he most likely won't get out before his court dates."

Sensing the greater issue at hand, their mom slammed the door and locked it. "What good will that do us? The whole family lives a block over and they aren't exactly balanced. What if they come over here looking to cause a problem? Your brother is now responsible for one son getting arrested and the other interrogated. Don't you think they may be angry. And this weekend is the block party too! Your brother cannot come now!"

A silence descended over the kitchen.

Dread filled Will.

A sense of opportunity overcame Jay.

Endora groaned, "I haven't even started getting ready for that...what am I bringing?"

"Don't worry dear, I'll pick up cupcakes for you. You just focus on relaxing and healing." Mrs Halstead then looked back to her dark haired son, "Did Ryan recognize her?"

Jay was silent in his not knowing.

Will chimed in, "No. He had no clue. Which is a plus...he must not be part of the group robbing homes."

His mother seemed thoughtful.

Endora rolled her eyes, "So he's just a run of the mill violent repeat offender."

No one in the room disagreed. Everyone in the room knew how dysfunctional and prone to violence the family was known to be. Not a week went by without at minimum one visit from the police. Everyone in the kitchen also knew that they would attend the block party, every summer there was a big block party around mid-July. The entire family showed up rain or shine, regardless of restraining orders or level of sobriety.

Out of thin air, Mrs Halstead inquired to no one specific. "I wonder if the rest of the robbers in the group live in this neighborhood? Or will come this weekend?"

Jay and his mother shared a look.

Absentmindedly Endora shifted in the wooden chair which got Will's attention.

As a result, he ran the back of his finger down the back of her neck. "Why don't we go to bed. I'll help you get ready and give you something to help you sleep." Prepared for a fight. Will was genuinely surprised when Endora's shoulders sank and she gave in.

"That sounds good." Her eyes still travelled to the older woman, who nodded in total support at the choice.

"You go lie down sweetheart. We'll all be here in the morning. The boys will be so excited to show you their trophy. They won the laser tag competition."


	27. Chapter 27

Will finally woke up after snoozing the alarm on his iPhone several times.

When he did wake up, he was surprised to find himself alone in the guest bedroom. A pile of pillows were all the evidence that Endora had been in bed with him.

Alarmed, he sat up and looked around the daylight lightening heavily antique inspired guest room.

Soft voices got his attention from outside the room.

Quickly, unbothered by how messy his red hair looked or the fact he still had on the clothes he had on yesterday. Will padded out into the hall rubbing the sleep from his face and then adjusting himself. There were some things that his mother never needed to know about.

His mother's soft voice died the second she saw him appear in the kitchen doorway.

Will didn't know what was more horrifying. His mother's sudden silence or the fact Endora was dressed, somewhat. When they went to bed he'd helped her into a pair of his sweatpants and old oversized t-shirt. Seated at the table with her back to him, he could make out a black silky shirt dress that had both sequins and feathers. While he'd never seen it before, it was not something his mother wore which could only mean a trip to Endora's house was made.

He was relieved to see her sling was still on.

"Morning sweetie. I packed you breakfast and lunch." Mrs Halstead greeted, pointing to a puffy lunch bag.

"Morning Ma..." Will smiled then looked down at Endora to see beads down the front of her kaftan. "Tell me you didn't go get this or put it on."

"Don't be a pill. And I can barely move. I can't exactly go sprinting up the sidewalk or up the stairs in my house to my bedroom." Endora seethed, far from happy and she wasn't a morning person to begin with. She eyed her nails while pondering if she needed another emergency appointment. "This was in my car. I went shopping the other day and just didnt get a chance to take it out. And I cut off all the clothes you put on me and had your brother help me get dressed."

Mrs Halstead laughed then stopped when she saw Will's heated look. "Don't make that face. You'll get a wrinkle. Besides, I crushed up two of those pills you had in your bag for Endora and put them in his coffee last night. Jay couldn't help her get dressed even if he wanted to."

Will gaped in shock.

Endora sipped her hot tea, "He's still breathing. Don't worry."

Will's eyes were wide, "Ma you didn't."

"What? I can't have him vanishing into the night to get himself murdered by the Donovan's!" She paused, glanced over her shoulder at the cat clock on the wall and then stood up. "Speaking of which...I need to make a call...Karen should be up by now." After sending a pointed look Endora's way, she got up and scurried from the kitchen, hugging Will on her way out.

Once she was out of the kitchen, Endora pulled herself up into a standing position.

"Whatever my mother is planning today...I want you to stop it." Will demanded of her, grabbing the silky fabric of her flowy robe dress. He stepped close to prevent her from moving around, penning her in against the kitchen table. Endora lifted her face to look him in the eye.

He reached down to run his fingers through strands of her loose hair, push them behind her ear. "Do you promise? I cannot spend all day worrying about the two of you."

Significantly restrained in her available movements, Endora tugged at his cotton shirt with her fingers on the arm not in a cast. "I'm taking your mom to work with me. Then to my doctor appointment for this mess here." A gesture was made towards her cast. "If you make it worth my while, I may be inclined to keep her on track. I may even have her take the boys somewhere...like the zoo."

"What doctor are you seeing?"

She moved to bring her cup of tea to the sink, but he prevented her from moving with a shift of his hips.

Endora said nothing, unsure whether to be offended or amused.

"Depending on who it is, I might be able to sneak away from your appointment. You know...provide moral support."

One of her eyebrows rose. "Is that what we're calling it now?"

Will then kissed her suddenly, taking her completely by surprise. It was not an easy kiss. Nor was it a gentle kiss. It was in sharp contrast to the way he carefully treated her last night, nursed to her needs and looked after her with the utmost care and devotion. His kiss however was needy. It was a deep desperate need to see that she was indeed ok. A need to feel her response, feel the warmness of a living human. Will had spent most of what was left of the night watching her sleep. She'd only taken half the pill he gave her and it still wiped her out.

Her hand fisted in his shirt. But every movement hurt. Every turn, every arch, every time her slung arm bumped into him she hurt.

While Will kissed her, he asked against her lips, "When's your appointment?"

She gasped, kissed him, nibbled on his bottom lip and thought it over, "One or two...Sometime. I'll text you."

Once more he stole a soul sucking kiss from her, then he lifted the deep v of her outfit. Tilting his head he got a look at her collarbone and seriously wondered if she'd need surgery to pin it in place.

"I really should break up with you." She seethed, "I've had more trips to the ER since hooking up with you than I have had in the past ten years. You're lucky you're cute."

He smiled and kissed her again, though considerably gentler. "Text me when you get to the hospital. If I can I'll swing up to orthopedics."

Annoyed in general by the whole situation, she nodded in concession.

"Don't worry. We'll make it through the rest of the summer. It can only go up from here."


	28. Chapter 28

Wills shift was pure and utter chaos from the second he clocked in until three hours after it was supposed to end, when he finally was able to leave the hospital.

He didn't have time to eat, he barely had time to send a quick text to Endora to let her know.

He didn't even have time to feel bad.

Plus, there were several patients that had stayed with him long after they were sent on to surgery, ICU and the morgue.

Victims of a violent home invasion. Only two masked men Will had overheard the only victim able to talk say. Money, credit cards and jewelry had been taken. But what alarmed Will most was how violent the robbery had been. It was a huge change from the previous break-ins.

Throughout the day there had been a steady police presence. So he'd been able to hear the concern in their voices too. Discussions on whether the burglars were devolving and on a violent messy downward spiral as their criminal escapades unraveled. Or were there copycats?

There was a definite fear hanging over the city.

Between jittery police officers, nervous people and news reporters doing special segments on keeping safe, Will felt it as sure as he felt tired and hungry.

"Hey, Will!"

Will paused and turned outside his car.

Doctor Charles hurried his way.

"Could I imposition you for a ride?"

Will smiled at the sight of his coworker and friend and the two boxes of what looked like medical journals. With a jerk of his head and wave of his hand, he hit the unlock button on his key fob, "Sure. I'm heading your way."

Walking home, or even taking the train with that much stuff wasn't fun at all.

Will could remember his college and med school days.

The two men tossed their backpack and boxes into the backseat and then hopped in the front seats.

Grateful, Doctor Charles thanked Will for the ride and sank deeply into the front passenger seat. He watched the younger man start his car and back out of the parking spot. Only when they were out of the hospital parking lot and on their way did he ask, "Your mom and friend live down in the hot zone map that was on the news?"

Stopping for a traffic light, Will nodded and glanced over at Charles.

"Yeah. After I swing by my apartment for a overnight bag I'm going to head down there." His gaze flickered briefly at the light before Will inquired, "What's your opinion on these guys? It's all anyone can talk about and you are something of an expert."

Charles laughed softly beside him. "Criminal minds are not my expertise."

"Of course not," Will agreed. "But for shits and giggles. Have you developed any thoughts given your vast time spent in the wild world of psychiatry?"

Amused, Charles considered the question.

By the time the light turned green he had a response.

"Being just my personal opinion from what we've all seen on tv? Nothing concrete or set in stone?"

"Of course," Will's eyes remained on the road.

"I would think that the leader of their group, or the member who exerted the most stabilizing control is no longer around. Their crime today was horrific. I can't help but wonder if the group has broken up for whatever reason and the remaining men are on some sort of crime spree."

Traffic wasn't too bad. It was moving through the city. Allowing Will to be present in the discussion and pay attention to the road.

"So the news is right? They're devolving?"

A noise that could have meant anything came from Charles. "I'd wait and see what happens next before saying that myself."

Understanding, Will nodded and turned on his blinker to make a turn.

"What are you doing tonight? Any big plans for the danger zone?"

Once the turn was made, Will looked over to Daniel with a good natured smile on his face. "Gonna go crash at Endora's House." Knowing that his friend and coworker would be alone, again, he hesitated then asked, "You wanna pack a overnight bag and come? It doesn't look like you plan on sleeping much."

Charles peeked back at his boxes.

His apartment was well outside of the heatmap that the news had been broadcasting. He had a big evening planned of reading and relaxing. Still, he could not say that he wasn't intrigued.

"Sure. Why not," he grinned. He could read medical journals anywhere. A change in scenery was always fun. Not to mention his concern. He'd watched Will struggle over the past few months. It killed him. He wanted nothing more to help. Spending the night in what was now one of the most dangerous parts of the city didn't make him hesitate. He wanted to observe Will with his own eyes.

Hearing from Maggie that Will had started a relationship with a single mother at a shocking rate of speed alarmed him. Paired with the encounter with the the burglars and one at the courthouse. He was concerned.

Daniel wanted very much to see that Will was more than ok with his own two eyes.

XXXXIIIXXXXIIIXXXXIIIXXXX

It was close to nine thirty when Will parked in the driveway at Endora's House. He'd pointed out all the sights to his childhood stomping grounds on their way.

Parked on the street in front of the house was a van from a security company.

On the front porch stood Endora with the twins and a uniformed man with a clipboard.

"A friend of mine has the same security system. Top of the line. He's quite pleased with it," Charles shared. "Did she break her arm yesterday?"

Slinging his backpack over his shoulder and then grabbing one of the heavy boxes, Will shook his head. "Collarbone."

Charles winced, "That's never fun." He then grabbed his other box and followed Will up the walkway to the front porch. He got a look at a well maintained yard and two healthy looking kids. One with head of messy dark hair and the other with what looked like a buzz cut. Both little boys did their best to warn off the Security system guy with pointed glares and little crossed arms.

As Endora signed a clipboard she glanced at the two approaching men from the corner of her eye. Her signature wobbled from the jerky clipboard. She was tired and had a big night of lounging on the couch planned. The best she could come up with was, "Hey Cujo and Friend."

"Who's friend?" Snoopy demanded, resting his hands on his hips to get a good look at Charles. His twin was unconcerned. More focused on chasing off the home security man who seemed to be taking his sweet time tearing off receipts from the press paper.

Will introduced Charles as he climbed up the steps.

Snoopy eyed Charles, "What kind of a doctor are you?"

Will kissed Endora on the cheek in a gentle caring sort of way. He also ran a hand over her bottom in a display for the home security guy, then went inside to be greeted by the rest of the boys shouting.

"A psychiatrist," Charles answered at the foot of the steps.

"Dude...you just hit the jackpot."


	29. Chapter 29

"So you're the one who paid them extra money to come here past business hours and install a system in my mother's house? You're the one I have to thank for all that noise?"

Under the soft glow of street lights, a series of different alarms permeated the neighborhood as Will's mother tested the various alarm sounds on her new system.

Not even paying attention to his tone, she dabbed at her nails with nail polish. "My house too."

Seated beside Endora on the front stoop, Charles chimed in, "A friend of mine has the same security system. He swears by it." In his hands was a glass of tea and in his lap was a medical journal he hadn't even opened.

After he and Will ate some reheated tacos, the circus of bedtime commenced.

It'd been a while since he'd been a part of a bedtime ritual.

And now he found himself outside enjoying the neighborhood sights, watching the roving neighborhood watch patrols enjoying the quiet simplicity of a hot summer night.

"So where do the Donovan's live?"

Will's head snapped up from the other side of Endora. He had been scouring though journals for Charles, putting Post It notes on relevant articles.

Nailpolish brush in hand, she pointed to a house two houses down on the right. "Behind that house. The one with four dishes on the roof."

Charles was quiet for a moment.

Endora went back to touching up her nails with her usable hand.

"That's pretty close," he observed.

Will glanced over at the house with all the dishes, observing for himself what he already knew.

"So you know this family?"

"Unfortunately," Endora sighed, "We went to school with the kids. Mike tormented me throughout high school. He actually pushed me into traffic once."

Charles was horrified.

"I remember that...remember when he pushed you down a flight of stairs? You landed on me and I had to go to the Hospital? Because the stitches in my mouth from my wisdom teeth extraction opened? There was blood everywhere? Tiffany with the blue hair broke her thumb?"

Endora remembered it. She remembered it vividly. She'd been mortified. Blood had been everywhere and Tiffany had never let her forget. "I remembered Tiffany...I don't remember you being there..."

Will rolled his eyes.

Charles watched in amusement.

"She doesn't remember me at all," Will informed Charles in a slightly annoyed sort of way. Just as the alarms started up again. New alarms this time. Alarms that sent Will up onto his feet. Medical journals tossed aside. He then stormed down the steps towards his parents house after declaring he'd be right back.

Endora watched with a sizable grin on her face.

"You lied to him."

She glanced at Charles, still grinning, "What?"

"He thinks you don't remember him."

Her grin turned into a smirk. Endora then leaned forward as far as the pain in her shoulder would allow before the pain went from significantly uncomfortable to blindingly scorching. When she wiggled back her hand covered her slinged up arm to keep movement to a minimum. "I had the biggest crush on him growing up. It was so bad."

One of Charles's dark eyebrows rose.

"Seeing him again sort of took me by surprise...so I just told him I didn't remember because I was terrified he'd remember how crazy I acted. Now it's just sort of fun."

Charles's eyebrow remained up.

"So I'm still a little crazy apparently."

"Eccentric, I'd say," he laughed.

Companionably, both of them quieted down for a moment when sounds of Will and his mother arguing drifted down the street. When they fell into a warm silence, he broke it by saying, "Those kids are doing remarkably well. They're little spitfires."

She cocked her head to look at him, "Will told you?"

"No they did. They are a chatty bunch of boys."

She laughed softly.

"They showed me the room with the pictures of all their parents, the altar and candles and belongings. It's a really good idea."

"My witch suggested it."

That earned her another raised eyebrow.

"Life coach, I think is what you'd call her, spirit guide...she's really good if you want to go see her. She is a grief counselor on the side. My priest referred me." When he laughed she cried out, "For reals! He sees her too!" After which she immediately regretted it, her hand went to her chest.

The doctor said she wouldn't need surgery and she didn't realize how relieved she was to hear that, up until she started sobbing from relief. Those sobs only lasted a few moments due to the sheer agony. The orthopedist was understanding, assuming that it was stress from the accident.

"Are you alright? Would you like a pillow? Do you want to go inside on the couch?"

"The couch sounds sublime Daniel."

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After settling Daniel into the living room with a beer and pile of medical journals, Will headed upstairs after hearing the sounds of a bath being drawn. Sheer concern had come over both men at the sounds of the water. Memories of previous patients with broken bones injuring themselves further in the bathroom came to both their minds.

Still, Will assured Doctor Charles that he'd go check on Endora.

Then as soon as he was out of Daniel's sight, he sprinted up the steps.

Will didn't even knock on the bathroom door when he slid inside.

His concern was not unwarranted.

While the steam rising off the tub full of bubbles clung to the tile floors, he was more alarmed by the sight of Endora taking a pair of scissors to her black kaftan. She paused mid motion at the sight of him before she could make one cut.

"No. Just no."

"I haven't bathed since I was at your apartment," she hissed dangerously. "My hair...I just can't even..."

Stepping into the steam, he grabbed the scissors and put them down on a new sink counter. A double sink had been installed upon their move in. Two sinks with fours boys made all the difference. Being somewhat of an expert, Will helped her out of the black billowy silky garment with minimal discomfort.

There was no bra beneath. But there was a pair of black panties covered with silver stars and a matching moon.

"We'll wash your hair in the tub. Let's get you in there without any more broken bones." He planned, tossing the panties aside.

Touching her flat and dirty hair piled up in a knot on the top of her head, Endora sighed miserably. "This is just so romantic. The magic is gone."

He rolled his eyes and helped her into the old claw footed tub, sling and all, refusing to take part in her pity party.

Once she was seated in the hot bubbly water, Endora glanced up at him. A request was on her lips.

"What are you doing?" She watched Will pull his t-shirt over his head then unbutton his jeans. "Daniel is downstairs."

Will's pants were off and kicked across the bathroom before he answered, "I told him I was going to help you bath and get to bed." When she frowned he added, "He was about to come check on you when we heard you start the tub. So you should be happy he agreed to stay downstairs."

She pondered those words as Will climbed in the tub and settled in to face her.

"He does hover as much as you," she conceded.

That earned her a chastising frown.

Yet the dark blue sling and bruising prevented Will from being too hard on her, "What'd the orthopedist say?" He then grabbed the loofa and a bottle of shower gel. Taking his time after lathering it up to gently scrub her arms and neck, back and fingers, listening as she told him how the appointment went.

No surgery. Yes sling. Appointment next week and weekly to be sure the bone heals correctly.

By the time Will began to softly wipe her face with a face cloth, her misery had melted away in the scorching water that had made Will's skin turn pink.

"So I have a wedding to go to next weekend."

Endora's eyes were closed as the facecloth delicately went over her stitches, "I hope you have a hot date lined up." After what was sure to be a lively weekend coming up with the block party, Endora had big plans to do nothing next weekend.

That facecloth was wrung out and hung up where Will had found it.

"It's at a resort on the lake. One of my cousins. They're always bragging about how quick they conceived their kids and how quick they lost the baby weight. They're always on me about having kids to complete my life."

Endora grimaced in response.

When he reached out to touch her chin she opened her eyes.

"Do you want to borrow my boys? If you proposition them with enough Legos they'll be on their best or worst behavior."

"How many Legos would it take to get you there too on your sauciest behavior?"

She thought about it.

Obviously she looked like a hot mess, so that would not be a shock. But by then most of her bruises would have lightened significantly if not be hopefully gone. She hoped her collarbone would be less painful. "How many Legos..." she wondered aloud, "...I have enough Legos. I could really go for a foot rub tonight."


	30. Chapter 30

"Two boys are coming in from Saint Michaels. They were fighting and fell off the bleachers." April announced to Maggie, Will and Ethan, all of whom were deep in discussion about three patients who they suspected were in a sister wife type relationship.

All three faces turned to April.

Maggie hesitated, then looked over at Will, "Saint Michaels...isn't that where your girlfriends kids go?"

Three heads then looked at Will.

Will could not believe it. He shook his head then thought about it, and then shook his head again. "Yeah...come on though, after the past few weeks, there is no way any of them are on that ambulance." Not that he sounded completely convinced.

In fact, the more thought he gave it from within the nurses station the more he began to wonder.

Maggie and Ethan updated April on the guy with two women kissing him in exam room.

Feeling a bit off suddenly, he grabbed his water bottle for a quick swig before heading over to wait on the ambulances. It wasn't long before Ethan joined him. The two waited and debated on whether snakebite guy was a polygamist or just had a lot of girlfriends.

Unconventional relationships were not unheard of in the ED. But usually there was far more drama when all the parties found out about each other.

When the two ambulances eventually pulled into the drop off bay, both men perked up.

A sense of doom overcame Will when a paramedic told him the name of the first kid: Liam Donovan.

Having been briefed on the Donovan family's possible ties to the burglaries by the hospital, Ethan volunteered to take Liam. Which left Will seriously wondering who the Donovan kid had been fighting with.

When the second ambulance pulled up, Will was both shocked and not so much to see Mark and his Mohawk wheeled out on a stretcher. Strapped down to a board with a neck brace and still shouting threats at the Donovan child, who was already in the ED.

"He's been like that since we strapped him down," the paramedic explained sympathetically to Will. "He was on the bottom falling off the bleachers. They were still fighting when we got there. The principal is being driven here by one of the teachers. The other kid had a pair of scissors."

Upon seeing and recognizing Will, Mark shouted out for his benefit. "And I kicked his ass anyway! I'll kick his ass tomorrow too! Scissors or not!"

After hearing about fighting, falling and scissors, Will was surprised to see no blood.

He set a hand on Marks wrist as the stretcher was wheeled inside in an attempt to quell the shouting. It quieted the boy down a fraction. Only because Mark turned his attention to Will. His eyes blazed intently, "Unstrap me Dude! I'm ready for more!"

His uniform was disheveled and torn.

His cheeks were red. His knuckles were scuffed and torn. His Mohawk was disheveled.

"What bleacher did you two fall off at school?"

As Will went to the same school, he was familiar with the bleacher heights.

Mark was wheeled into the depths of the ED where the board he was strapped to was lifted onto a stretcher. Unable to move, he became a little frightened, stressed as a result. "In the gym at the top." He responded, eyes darting desperately around at the lights and ceiling, unable to see more. "And we didn't fall. That bastard pushed me! I grabbed his tie though and pulled his ass off with me! He picked a fight with the wrong one! I've been in more fights than he's had hot dinners!"

Will began to ask him questions about his head, his neck, his back and pain. A light was shined in his eyes.

He then stood over him so Mark would see him. "We're going to go down the hall to take pictures of your spine and head. Ok?"

Mark became quiet.

Fear was evident in the little boys eyes.

"We're? You're coming too?"

"Of course," Will answered then glanced up at April, who had cut off Marks shoe and up his pantleg to the knee. "How does your ankle feel?"

Mark thought about it and tried hard to look down at his ankle, but the straps held tight. "I don't know, like, tingly, I guess." When he tried to wiggle his toes a fiery pain landed up from his ankle to his knee. A blood curdling profanity laced scream came from him, heard throughout the ED and hallways beyond.

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"I hear you are telling everyone you're allergic to pain medication."

Mark looked up from the stretcher that he'd been left on, alone, in a small room in the ED while results from scans came in. He couldn't bring himself to even smile lightly.

"I don't think you're allergic." Will softly spoke, eyeing the swollen ankle wrapped up with compresses. "Is this because of Endora?"

Mark scowled, "No. Its cause my mother is an addict. I don't want that stuff in my system with my genes. It's best to not tempt fate."

Will felt weak as he went to the bed.

He could no believe the words that had come from Marks mouth.

He stared at the child who seemed fully engulfed in the bed in the neck brace still. In that moment he decided to broach the topic of pain control in a bit. "Almost all of your scans look good. I'm waiting on two more of your neck. Endora is on her way. And your ankle is just sprained."

A smirk curled onto Marks face. "Can I keep the neck brace?"

Will ignored that request and leaned against the hospital bed. "Tell me. What caused this fight?"

Sagging further into the bed, Mark looked at the doorway.

Will leaned closer to give them some privacy.

After a minute or two, he sighed. "Liam was talking about Endora. I told him to shut his dirty mouth. He shoved me and I didn't do anything. He kept talking and I told him to shut up. He hit me and I hit him back. We got in a fight."

"What was he saying?"

Loudly Mark sighed and then rolled his eyes. "He was all like...your slutty guardian stabbed my uncle with her shoe. And I was all like...you're a damn liar cause she came home from the courthouse with all her shoes on."

Will thought about that, pondered it really.

"Like, I think I'd remember her missing a shoe. What a dumbass."

Wanting clarification, Will pressed, "Did he say what uncle she stabbed with her shoe?"

Mark reached up to touch the stethoscope around Will's neck.

"I dunno. He was all like...she stabbed my uncle and got him thrown in jail. And like, he was bitching about his other uncle having to stay at a hotel up in Canada cause some crazy woman shot at him with a flaming bullet. A for real flaming bullet. Between you and me...I think Liam is just blaming his family problems on other people. That family needs to take some responsibility."

Will crossed his arms, pressed his lips and chewed on that little bit of information.

As Mark fidgeted, Will quietly asked, "Is that what you think you're doing? By refusing medication for pain?"

Mark seemed obviously uncomfortable and not from the topic Will raised.

After he finished shifting on the thin mattress, he grunted. "Can't take the chance man. I have a family again. I've got brothers who depend on me. Endora relies on me. It's best to not tempt the universe."

Will couldn't help but feel shocked at the casual way Mark spoke, saddened too. He couldn't imagine ever having had such a thought process at such a young age.


End file.
